HEADSPACE VOLATILES FROM WOODS AND ESSENT IAL OILS

Headspace volatiles emitted from extracts from supercritical fluid ext ractions (SFE) using carbon dioxide and essential oils by hot-water di stillations from seven species of woods were collected; Four of the sp ecies were of Cupressaceae, hinoki, Chamaecyparis obtusa (S. and Z.) E ndl.; hinokiasunaro, Thujopsis dolabrata S. and Z. var. hondai Makino; Alaska cedar, Chamaecyparis nootkatensis (D. Don.) Sparch; and wester n redcedar, Thuja plicata D. Don.; two species were of Pinaceae; akama tsu, Pinus densiflora S. and Z. and Douglas fir, Pseudotsuga menziesii (Mirb.) Franco; and one species of Taxodiaceae; sugi, Cryptomeria jap onica D. Don. were collected. Their volatiles were analysed by GLC (ga s-liquid chromatography) to compare them with those of wood powders (w oods). Headspace Volatiles of woods, SFE extracts, and essential oils consisted of eleven monoterpenes and three sesquiterpenes. The sesquit erpenes were found in headspace gases of Douglas-fir wood and in essen tial oils. Other headspace gases consisted of several monoterpenes onl y, and the main compounds of each headspace volatile were alpha-pinene and/or beta-pinene. The smallest concentration was in sugi (20 ppb), and the largest was in akamatsu (10,745 ppb) of all the headspace gase s of the woods. Those of the other five species were from 338 to 1,042 ppb. The compositions of the three headspace volatiles mentioned, tha t is, those from woods, SFE extracts, and essential oils were differen t from each other. The compositions of volatiles of SFE extracts were more simple, and the contents of alpha-pinene, except in akamatsu, was larger than those of other woods. Therefore, by the compositions of h eadspace volatiles of SFE extracts of the seven species they were clas sfied into two categories: (1) the compositions of headspace volatiles of the SFE extract were similar to that of wood, (2) the content of a lpha-pinene of the SFE extract was much lager than that of wood. Heads pace gases of essential oils containing lower-volatile compounds, such as beta-pinene and myrcene, were lager than those of SFE extracts. In addition, a few compounds that were not found in the headspace gases of the woods were found in those of essential oils. It is suggested th at the essential oils suffered some damage by heating, so that the odo rs were slightly different from those of wood.