Composition of the essential oil from Achillea millefolium L. from Estonia

The essential oil obtained by simultaneous steam distillation and extractio n (SDE) from air-dried aerial parts of plant species Achillea millefolium L . yarrow was analyzed by capillary CC and GC/MS. Sixty-six components were identified. The major constituents in the oil extracts were beta -pinene (1 4.9-29.2%), sabinene (2.9-17.6%), 1,8-cineole (6.9-18.3%), beta -caryophyll ene (3.3-6.2%), (E)-nerolidol (0.5-6.4%), guaiol (0.3-11.8%) and chamazulen e (0.1-13.3%). The monoterpene fraction represented 41-61% of the total oil . The increasing of distillation time from 0.5-3 h increased the yield of o il ca. two-fold, at the same time the chamazulene content increased ca. thr ee-fold. The yield of oil after two hours distillation was 2-4 mg/g. The oi l yield from the flowers was two times higher than from the leaves, while i t was very low from the steins. The oil from the leaves and especially from the stems contained more oxygenated aliphatic compounds, diterpenoid compo unds and other highboiling compounds, and less chamazulene and sesquiterpen es than oil from the yarrow flowers.