Benzyl salicylate is a chemical compound, salicylic acid benzyl ester and it is obtained by the esterification of salicylic acid with benzyl alcohol.  

It appears in the form of a transparent liquid.

What it is used for and where

Cosmetics

It is a restricted ingredient  III/75  as a Relevant Item in the Annexes of the European Cosmetics Regulation 1223/2009. The presence of the substance must be indicated in the list of ingredients referred to in Article 19(1)g when its concentration exceeds:

- 0.001% in leave-on products

- 0.01% in rinse-off products 

Benzyl salicylate is an ingredient that is added to liquid soaps, shampoos etc. for fragrance.

As an INCI ingredient, it acts as follows:

Perfuming. Unlike fragrance, which can also contain slightly less pleasant or characteristic odours, the term perfume indicates only very pleasant fragrances.

UV absorber. It acts by intercepting ultraviolet light before it can cause damage by reducing its energy through dissipation and returning it to a lower energy state.

In general, salicylate esters constitute a class of chemicals widely used as flavors and fragrances in food, beverages and many consumer products.

However, some personal care products are pollutants: Ambrofix, Amyl Salicylate, Benzyl Salicylate, Hexyl Salicylate, Lemonile and Okoumal were detected for the first time in natural Antarctic sea water and reached total concentrations up to 100 ng-1 (1 ).

The most relevant studies on the subject have been selected with a summary of their contents:

Benzyl salicylate studies

Optimal typical characteristics of the commercial product Benzyl salicylate in liquid form

• Molecular Formula: C₁₄H₁₂O₃
• Linear Formula 2-(HO)C₆H₄CO₂CH₂C₆H₅
• Molecular Weight: 228.247 g/mol
• Exact Mass    39.992512
• UNII: WAO5MNK9TU
• CAS: 118-58-1
• EC Number: 204-262-9
• DSSTox Substance ID:  
• InChI=1S/C14H12O3/c15-13-9-5-4-8-12(13)14(16)17-10-11-6-2-1-3-7-11/h1-9,15H,10H2 
• InChl Key      ZCTQGTTXIYCGGC-UHFFFAOYSA-N
• SMILES    C1=CC=C(C=C1)COC(=O)C2=CC=CC=C2O
• IUPAC   benzyl 2-hydroxybenzoate
• ChEBI 165211
• FEMA Number: 2151
• PubChem Substance ID 329769294
• MDL number MFCD00020034
• Beilstein Registry Number 2115365

Synonyms:

• 2-hydroxy-benzoicaciphenylmethylester
• Benzyl 2-hydroxybenzoate
• Benzyl o-hydroxybenzoate
• Salicylic acid, benzyl ester
• Benzoic acid, hydroxy-, phenylmethyl ester
• benzyl-salicylate
• Benzyle salicylate
• salicylic acid benzyl
• 2-Hydroxybenzoic acid, phenylmethyl ester
• Benzoic acid, 2-hydroxy-, phenylmethyl ester
• Phenylmethyl 2-hydroxybenzoate
• Salicylic Acid Benzyl Ester
• Salicyclic acid, benzyl ester
• Salicylsaeurebenzylester

References_____________________________________________________________________

(1)  Vecchiato M, Gregoris E, Barbaro E, Barbante C, Piazza R, Gambaro A.  -   Fragrances in the seawater of Terra Nova Bay, Antarctica.  - Sci Total Environ. 2017 Sep 1;593-594:375-379. doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2017.03.197. Epub 2017 Mar 27.