GENERAL MONOGRAPHS

733

OLEUM RICINI
(01. Ricin.)
Castor Oil
Castor oil is a fixed oil obtained by expression from castor oil seed.
The expression is largely carried out in Italy, Marseilles, London and
Hull, and the oil thus obtained is usually bleached by exposure to the
sun or by chemical means. It occurs as a nearly colourless or pale
yellow, viscid liquid, having a faint odour and a taste which is bland
at first, but afterwards acrid and nauseating. When 1 millilitre of the oil
is shaken with 0-5 millilitre of light petroleum (boiling-point, 50 to 60),
a clear solution is produced which becomes cloudy on the addition of a
further 1 -5 millilitres of the light petroleum. It forms a clear solution
with an equal volume of dehydrated alcohol. On cooling the oil to 0 it
remains bright, but on cooling to about 18 it congeals to a yellowish
mass. The most distinctive features of the oil are its high specific
gravity, the behaviour with dehydrated alcohol and with light petroleum,
its high acetyl value and its high viscosity. The specific gravity is the
highest of any natural fatty oil. Castor oil contains the glycerides of
ricinoleic and woricinoleic acids; the glycerides of stearic and dihydroxystearic acid are also present in small quantities. Ricinoleic acid,
CjgH^Og, is a viscid liquid and yields when acted upon by nitrous acid a
crystalline body, ricinelaidic acid; a similar reaction occurs when castor
oil is treated with nitrous acid.
Soluble in alcohol (90 per cent.) (1 in 3-5); miscible with dehydrated
alcohol, ether and glacial acetic acid.
Standard, B.P.Castor oil has a specific gravity of 0-958 to 0-969
Refractive index at 40, 14695 to 14730. Acid value, not more than
4-0. Saponification value, 177 to 187. Iodine value, 82 to 90. Optical
rotation, not less than +3-5. It remains bright when maintained at 0
for three hours.
Action and Uses.Castor oil is a mild purgative, its action being
exerted as a result of saponification in the small intestine with formation
of alkali ricinoleate. The oil is a valuable laxative and is particularly
useful in acute diarrhoea, especially when due to any form of food poisoning; sometimes 0*6 millilitre (10 minims) of tincture of opium is added.
Small repeated doses of 0-3 to 0-6 millilitre (5 to 10 minims) may be
given in the intestinal colic of children. The oil is used as a rectal
injection to remove impacted faeces, sometimes with olive oil. Externally, castor oil is sometimes applied, generally mixed with other
emollients, for bed sores. The oil is often used as an ingredient of
spirituous hair lotions. It is a soothing application when dropped into
the eye after removal of foreign bodies, and is an excellent solvent for
alkaloids,such as cocaine and atropine, when used in ophthalmic surgery.
Castor oil is best administered in milk or lemon juice, in capsules,
or as Mistura Olei Ricini. The dose should be administered an hour
before breakfast, on an empty stomach. Oleum Ricini Aromaticum is