Composition of Volatile Compounds of Apple Fruits in Relation to Cultivars

Abstract

Experiments were carried out to analyse the cultivar differences in the composition and content of flavour compounds by applying the head space and high vacuum distillation methods. 1. Seventy to 80 compounds were detected in the gas chromatogram peaks of which 39 compounds were identified by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. 2. The classes of the volatile compounds identified included 27 kinds of esters, 6 of alcohols, 2 of aldehydes and hydrocarbons, a phenol and an acid. 3. Esters were the most abundant flavour components detected when the head space method was applied, accounting for 80% or more of the total content of volatile compounds. And the total amounts of volatile compounds were highest in `Hatsuaki' (1.889 ppm) followed in descending order by, `Kogyoku' (l. 531 ppm), `Golden Delicious' (0.196 ppm), `Mutsu' (0.187 ppm) and `Fuji' (0.055 ppm). 4. The amount and composition of volatile compounds estimated by the high vacuum distillation method were nearly the same as those by the head space method. However, in the former method the class of alcohols was quantitatively the most abundant, the percentage of total volatile compounds ranging from 53.3% in `Hatsuaki' to 75.5% in `Fuji'. 5. The total amounts of volatile compounds recovered by the high vacuum distillation method were highest in the cultivar `Kogyoku', 9.415 ppm, followed by `Hatsuaki' with 8.936 ppm, `Golden Delicious' with 5.964 ppm, `Mutsu' with 3.711 ppm and lastly `Fuji' with 2.273 ppm. 6. From the above results it can be concluded that the cultivar `Kogyoku' and related cultivar `Hatsuaki' contain higher levels of volatile compounds and show a higher aroma intensity than other cultivars.