Compositional Profiling of Agarwood Oil (Aquilaria beccariana) from Malaysia using GC-MS and GC-FID for Enhanced Analytical Characterization

Abstract

Agarwood oil is one of the most beneficial and sought-after oils, which is significant. It’s considered an expensive natural raw world resource due to its quality and high demand. It is very beneficial and valuable and used worldwide, especially in fragrances, incense, perfumes, ceremonies, medicines, and symbols of wealth. The presence of various chemical compounds contributes to the unique aroma and reflects the quality of essentials and automatically affects the price of the oil. Nowadays, the quality of agarwood oil is classified based on the chemical constituents of the oil. This strategy can improve the exactness of the evaluating framework, hence illuminating the issue expressed by the conventional method which is based on color and odor. This existing method has a limitation which is the result varies for each panel and is based on individual experiences. The existing study mentioned that the main chemical constituents of agarwood oil consist of sesquiterpenes, sesquiterpene alcohols, oxygenated compounds, and chromone derivatives. This study uses GC-MS coupled with GC-FID analysis to identify the chemical compounds of agarwood oil from Aquilaria beccariana species.The result showed that this type of agarwood oil is categorized as C grade with sesquiterpene and sesquiterpenoid content of 21.94% (ABS1) and 21.90% (ABS2). Two adulterants namely benzyl benzoate (10.61% and bis (2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (10.09% - 12.31%) were found to indicate that the oil is impure. The study's findings play a crucial role in emphasizing the compounds that contribute to agarwood oil's significance as a prized and versatile natural resource, underscored by its diverse applications and unique chemical composition. The future direction entails refining chemical-based classification methods for precise quality assessment and fostering sustainable practices to ensure its continued value and impurity