Alternative Solvents for Car Air Freshener (Wooden Cap)
Question
For car air fresheners with wooden cap diffusers, what alternative solvents can be used instead of alcohol to achieve good fragrance diffusion throughout the car while evaporating slowly to last 1-2 months? Alcohol evaporates too quickly, while water and oil don't diffuse the scent effectively through the wooden cap.
Answer
For car air fresheners with a wooden cap diffuser, if you need an alternative solvent to alcohol to help the fragrance diffuse well throughout the car and evaporate slower, lasting around 1-2 months, you can consider using other types of solvents with a lower evaporation rate than alcohol.
Commonly used solvents for reed diffusers or air fresheners that require continuous but slower evaporation than alcohol include:
- Isopropyl Myristate (IPM): This is an ester that acts as a good solvent. It helps to diffuse fragrance oils and has a slower evaporation rate than alcohol, allowing the scent to last longer. It is suitable for use with wooden caps or reeds that require the liquid to wick and evaporate consistently.
- Dipropylene Glycol (DPG): This is a glycol commonly used as a solvent in fragrances and air freshener products. It also helps in fragrance diffusion and reduces the evaporation rate of the perfume effectively.
Using these solvents instead of alcohol will help solve the problem of overly fast evaporation in hot weather better than water, and also helps the scent disperse better than using high-viscosity oils alone, which may not wick through the wood as effectively.
From the search results, the product Isopropyl myristate (FEMA-3556) was found, which is one of the suitable solvents for this purpose.