Extraction and Volatile Compounds in Ginger Essential Oil (Zingiber officinale Roscoe) at Laboratory Scale

Abstract

Ginger (Zingiber officinale Roscoe) has a characteristic pungent taste and contains biologically active substances with many potential benefits for use in many different fields. Ginger essential oil is extracted from ginger root (Zingiber officinale) through steam distillation. The main compound in the essential oil was determined by the gas chromatography-mass spectrometry method and evaluated antioxidant activity by measuring DPPH. Essential oil of ginger yields 2.65 mL/g and comprises the primary chemical constituents such as zingiberene (18.95 %) which is the fragrance ingredient for the characteristic scent of ginger and some other ingredients camphene, β-phellandrene, α-citral, eucalyptol, sesquiphellandrene, α-farnesene, α-pinene, etc. The antioxidant activity of ginger essential oil was evaluated by the DPPH (2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl) method with radical scavenging ability and oxidation reached 74.19%. The present work was carried out for the purpose of developing products and applying ginger essential oil in the fields of pharmaceutical, cosmetic and food industries, clarifying the advantages and disadvantages and improving the value of ginger in different regions locally.