In short
Celestolide is a trade name for an acetyl indane polycyclic musk with a sweet, powdery musk odour. Like other polycyclic musks it is tenacious and inexpensive.
What Celestolide smells like
Celestolide (ADBI) is a clean, sweet musk with a slight fruity-floral quality, less aggressive than Galaxolide and less powdery than Tonalide, in a perfumery glossary. A fragrance reference gives powdery, fruity, slightly animalic, bright and clean, and quotes Arctander describing a mild, sweet-musky odour with a faint animal undertone and good tenacity.
- Leading note
- Clean sweet musk
- Supporting facets
- Fruity-floral
- Faint facets
- Powdery, animalic
- Character
- Clean, mild, bright
What makes Celestolide distinctive
The gentlest polycyclic musk: clean and bright, with a hint of fruit.
How Celestolide is used
Used as a clean, soft musk in functional and fine fragrance.
Typical role: fixative (slow to evaporate; helps a blend last and holds lighter notes).
How Celestolide differs from similar materials
- Galaxolide
- A glossary finds Celestolide less aggressive than Galaxolide, with a slight fruity-floral note. (compared directly by a cited source)
- Tonalide
- A glossary finds Celestolide less powdery than Tonalide. (compared directly by a cited source)
An asterisk marks a difference that a cited source states directly. The others compare the published descriptions of each material. Smell varies with grade, supplier and dilution; compare them side by side on blotters before substituting one for another.
Formulation considerations
Polycyclic musks are persistent in the environment; check current regulatory guidance for your market.
Identity and classification
- Type
- Aroma chemical
- Origin
- Synthetic
- Odour family
- Musky / Powdery
- Note position
- Base note
- Physical form at room temperature
- Solid
- Also known as
- 4-Acetyl-6-tert-butyl-1,1-dimethylindane, ADBI
- CAS number
- 13171-00-1
- Molecular formula
- C17H24O
- Molecular weight
- 244.37 g/mol
- IUPAC name
- 1-(6-tert-butyl-1,1-dimethyl-2,3-dihydroinden-4-yl)ethanone
The CAS number, formula and molecular weight are taken from PubChem compound 61585, whose own record lists this CAS number; checked 19 October 2026.
Safety and compliance
Hazard classification of the neat substance, as PubChem summarises it, read 26 October 2026. Companies notifying the ECHA C&L Inventory report it as not meeting the GHS hazard criteria (1,545 of 1,553 reports). Unless it is harmonised, this is the notifiers' own classification, not a binding one.
This page is general information, not a safety assessment or a specification. Confirm identity, composition, IFRA status and allergen content from your supplier's documents for the lot you hold.
Materials it works with
-
Galaxolide
Aroma chemical · Musky / Floral — musky, clean, sweet, floral
-
Tonalide
Aroma chemical · Musky / Powdery — musky, powdery, sweet, woody
-
Coumarin
Aroma chemical · Powdery / Fougère — hay, sweet, almond, tobacco
-
Heliotropin
Aroma chemical · Powdery / Gourmand — powdery, almond, vanilla, floral
Celestolide is also suggested as a partner on the pages for Traseolide.
Used in formulas and accords
Used in 6 published formulas
Celestolide is an ingredient in 6 perfume formulas in the Formula & Accord Library.
RUŌOD House Originals
Original compositions by RUŌOD House.
Further reading
Questions about Celestolide
Is Celestolide natural or synthetic?
Celestolide is synthetic — it is made by chemical synthesis.
What is the CAS number of Celestolide?
13171-00-1. It was checked against PubChem on 19 October 2026.
Which published formulas use Celestolide?
Celestolide is used in 6 published formulas in the RUŌOD Lab Formula & Accord Library, including Green Pod Theory, Orange Blossom Chalk and Pearl Brine. Each is listed with a link under "Used in formulas and accords" on this page.
Sources
- PubChem — compound 61585, checked 19 October 2026.
- PubChem — GHS classification (the ECHA C&L Inventory notifications and any harmonised EU entry), read 26 October 2026.
- Premiere Peau — Celestolide — published perfumery reference.
- The Good Scents Company — Celestolide (with Arctander) — odour database.
- Olfactory profile: the RUŌOD Lab team's synthesis of the published descriptions above, reviewed 21 October 2026. Evidence: more than one published description. Classification and the short description: revision 1. Descriptions of odour are judgement, not measurement.