2021 Volume 60 Issue 5 Pages 544-552
To elucidate molecular structure of carthamin, the global traditional cosmetic red ingredient that has a green metallic luster, The conditions and all natural materials of the traditional extraction and purification method based on traditional method in Yamagata prefecture, The tablet of fermented safflower petals (Benimochi) was chemically analyzed with varied instruments in detail. Carthamin was purified excellent in dispersion stability with sufficient reproducibility. The traditional “Sasabeni” is carthamin-3' potassium salt. Green metallic luster was observed from the pigment film immobilized on the black base. A reflection maximum around 550nm was found on the measured spectrum, which corresponded to a green color. There was no angle dependence on the wavelength for the reflection maximum. The metallic luster is occured at the air/film or glass/film interface, and contained poor linearly polarized components. These results suggested that the green metallic luster is similar to the reflection of real metallic materials.
