Isolation of geranyl geraniol from the unsaponifiable fraction of linseed oil.

From the unsaponifiable fraction (63 g) of linseed oil (25 kg), two terpenic alcohols were isolated by alumina column, thin-layer, and gas-liquid chromatography. They were identified as phytol and geranyl geraniol (a precursor of bi- and tricyclic diterpenes) by infrared and nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy, ozonolysis, and mass spectrometry.