Tonquitone
Premium Base Ingredient for Perfumery
Tonquitone™ is a proprietary musk base developed by IFF to replicate the rich, animalic warmth of natural deer musk using only macrocyclic and biodegradable materials. With a high-impact scent combining ambergris, dry wood, sweet balsam, and subtle civet nuances, Tonquitone™ functions as a powerful fixative and backbone material across leather, chypre, oriental, and fougère accords. Vegan-compliant and free from polycyclic and nitro musks, it delivers exceptional diffusion and tenacity while meeting modern safety and labelling standards.
Premium Base Ingredient for Perfumery
Tonquitone™ is a proprietary musk base developed by IFF to replicate the rich, animalic warmth of natural deer musk using only macrocyclic and biodegradable materials. With a high-impact scent combining ambergris, dry wood, sweet balsam, and subtle civet nuances, Tonquitone™ functions as a powerful fixative and backbone material across leather, chypre, oriental, and fougère accords. Vegan-compliant and free from polycyclic and nitro musks, it delivers exceptional diffusion and tenacity while meeting modern safety and labelling standards.
Premium Base Ingredient for Perfumery
Tonquitone™ is a proprietary musk base developed by IFF to replicate the rich, animalic warmth of natural deer musk using only macrocyclic and biodegradable materials. With a high-impact scent combining ambergris, dry wood, sweet balsam, and subtle civet nuances, Tonquitone™ functions as a powerful fixative and backbone material across leather, chypre, oriental, and fougère accords. Vegan-compliant and free from polycyclic and nitro musks, it delivers exceptional diffusion and tenacity while meeting modern safety and labelling standards.
Technical Ingredient Overview
🏭 Manufacturer — International Flavors & Fragrances (IFF)
🔎 Chemical Name — Tonquitone™ (proprietary fragrance base)
🧪 Synonyms — Tonquitone PCMF DEPR 1206; Tonquitone 0613; Tonquitone RMS 1018 (internal IFF codes)
📘 FEMA — None (non-flavour material)
📝 Odor Type — Musky–animalic fixative
📈 Odor Strength — High/substantive (trace → 2 % in concentrate)
👃🏼 Odor Profile — Realistic deer-musk facet with ambergris, dry-woody, sweet caramel/vanilla and slight urinous nuances
⚗️ Uses — Fine-fragrance & functional fragrance; anchors leather, fougère, chypre and oriental accords
🧴 Appearance — Clear, pale-yellow liquid; ρ 20 °C ≈ 1.01–1.02 g mL⁻¹; RI 20 °C ≈ 1.452–1.462; flash point ≈ 104 °C
What is Tonquitone?
Tonquitone™ is a proprietary macrocyclic-musk base developed by IFF to reproduce the sensual warmth of natural deer musk while remaining vegan-friendly and compliant with modern regulatory demands (e.g., PCMF = poly-cyclic-musk-free; DEPR = di-ethyl-phthalate-removed).
Olfactory Profile & Creative Performance
| Aspect | Details |
|---|---|
| Family / Descriptors | Animalic musk; facets of ambergris, horse-hair, dry woods, sweet balsam |
| Intensity & Tenacity | Powerful diffusion; ≥ 48 h on blotter |
| Volatility | Predominantly base note (cf. macrocyclic musks such as Muscenone) |
| Applications in Fine Fragrance | 0.01–0.5 % for skin-warmth; 1–2 % for feral, civet-toned accords. Pairs synergistically with castoreum replacers, costus, indole, Civetone and Ambrettolide. |
| Behaviour in Blends | High substantivity; rounds harsh lactones, extends woody musks, anchors volatile spices; soluble in ethanol, insoluble in water |
Physical & Performance Highlights
Tonquitone™ exhibits a specific gravity of 1.012 – 1.022 g·mL⁻¹ at 20 °C, a refractive index (nᴅ²⁰) of 1.4520 – 1.4620, and a closed-cup flash point of 104 °C—parameters that make it safe for hot-pour candles, polymer extrusions, and other high-temperature applications.
The base is fully miscible with ethanol, dipropylene glycol (DPG), and isopropyl myristate (IPM), yet remains insoluble in water, giving formulators broad flexibility across both alcoholic and anhydrous systems.
Odour evaluations highlight excellent tenacity, with a dry-down that persists for well over 48 h on blotter, placing Tonquitone™ among the most substantive macrocyclic musk blends available.
Formulation Implications
High flash‐point & low colour — Safe for hot-pour candles, micro-encapsulated fabric softeners, and solid perfume sticks without safety or staining concerns.
Macrocyclic-only profile — Supports “clean-label” positioning (no nitro- or polycyclic musks; readily biodegradable constituents).
Trace allergens — Present well below 0.01 % in finished products at normal inclusion levels, streamlining EU labelling; a full Quantitative Risk Assessment (QRA) is still recommended.
Recommended dosage — Trace to ~1 % of concentrate imparts realistic animalic warmth; levels >2 % create pronounced civet nuances suitable for bold fougère or leather accords.
Synergy in blends — Shows strong affinity with castoreum replacers, costus, indole, and macrocyclic partners such as Civetone and Ambrettolide, while softening sharp lactonic edges in fruity notes.
Industrial & Technical Uses {#industrial-uses}
Tonquitone™ is suitable for detergents, fabric-care micro-capsules, candles and air-care thanks to its high flash point and low colour. IFRA 51 (Categories 9–10A) permits inclusion levels up to ≈ 83 % in certain functional products, whereas lip- and oral-care (Categories 1 & 6) are not permitted.
Regulatory & Safety Overview
| Regulation | Status / Limit |
|---|---|
| IFRA (51a) | Cat 4 (fine fragrance) – not limited; Cat 11B (household aerosols) – 3.0 % |
| GHS / CLP | Full SDS not publicly released; supplier sheet reports no acute toxicity data |
| EU Cosmetics Regulation | Permitted within IFRA limits; no allergens ≥ 0.01 % listed |
| FEMA | Not approved for ingestion |
| Toxicology | IFF internal safety assessment; QRA recommended for finished products |
Tip for formulators
Trace amounts of Tonquitone™ (≈ 0.05 %) can dramatically enhance diffusion of woody musks like Shangralide while eliminating sharp lactonic edges in peach/fig accords.
References
International Flavors & Fragrances. (2025). Tonquitone™
International Fragrance Association. (2024, February 23). Certificate of Conformity with IFRA Standards: Tonquitone™ (51st Amendment).
Ventós. (2025). Specification sheet: Tonquitone IFF
