CARVONE AND LIMONENE IN CARAWAY FRUITS (CARUM-CARVI L) ANALYZED BY SUPERCRITICAL CARBON-DIOXIDE EXTRACTION GAS-CHROMATOGRAPHY

Dried fruits of caraway (Carum carvi L.) were analyzed with on-line su percritical fluid extraction-gas chromatography using supercritical ca rbon dioxide at 50 degrees C and 9.7 MPa of pressure. The solutes were cryogenically collected onto a DB-1 capillary GC column, and the effl uent was vented out. The compounds were subsequently eluted from the c ollection column with helium onto the head of the analytical DB-5 capi llary column and cryofocused with liquid nitrogen. The volatiles were detected by flame ionization detection and identified by mass spectrom etry. The rapid analytical procedure for quality assessment purposes w as optimized for limonene and carvone, and their contents in the fruit s were analyzed by using internal standards. Analyses of carvone in cu ltivar Polaris carried out by supercritical extraction and hydrodistil lation gave the same result, 2.7 g/100 g, but limonene contents determ ined were 1.8 and 1.3 g/100 g, respectively. The carvone content of Fi nnish caraway fruits of four origins cultivated in 1991 varied between 2.2 and 2.9 g/100 g of dried fruits and the ratio of carvone to limon ene varied from 1.7 to 2.4 in various fruit samples.