Scentography

Scentography is an emerging field concerned with the capture, documentation, analysis, and reproduction of odors. It sits at the intersection of chemistry, olfactometry, perfumery, archival science, and sensory media, and it seeks to create repeatable olfactory experiences for research, art, education, and industry.

Techniques and technologies include gas chromatography–olfactometry for identifying odor components and correlating them with sensory descriptions; electronic noses for pattern recognition; and scent delivery systems such as diffusers and microencapsulated fragrance libraries that allow controlled release. Digital encoding of odor information, using olfactory databases and sensory maps, is an area of development.

Applications range from odor archival and museum provenance to fragrance development, virtual reality, and sensory branding. In research, scentography supports studies of odor perception, memory, and emotion. The field faces challenges in subjectivity, variability of perception, reproducibility of complex odors, and standardization of measurement and delivery. Ethical and environmental considerations also arise in scent dissemination.

See also olfactometry, olfactory art, fragrance, electronic nose, aroma compound, digital scent technology.