Abstract
This study focused on characterization of the chemical components of an aromatherapy recipe. The formulation consisted of four blended essential oils; rosemary oil, eucalyptus oil, pine oil and lime oil (volume ratio 6: 2: 1: 1). The single and combination essential oils were identified by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). The analysis of GC-MS data revealed that several components exist in the mixture. The five most important components of the blended essential oils were 1,8-cineole (35.6 %), α-pinene (11.1 %), limonene (9.6 %), camphor (8.4 %), and camphene (6.6 %). The main components of rosemary oil were 1,8-cineole (37.3 %), α-pinene (19.3 %), camphor (14.7 %), camphene (8.8 %), and β-pinene (5.5 %); of eucalyptus oil 1,8-cineole (82.6 %) followed by limonene (7.4 %), o-cymene (4.3 %), γ-terpinene (2.7 %), and α-pinene (1.5 %); of pine oil terpinolene (26.7 %), α-terpineol (20.50 %), 1-terpineol (10.8 %), α-pinene (6.0 %), and γ-terpineol (5.3 %); and of lime oil limonene (62.9 %), γ-terpinene (11.5 %), α-terpineol (7.6 %), terpinolene (6.0 %), and α-terpinene (2.8 %). The present study provided a theoretical basis for the potential application of blended essential oils to be used as an aromatherapy essential oil recipe. GC-MS serves as a suitable and reliable method for the quality control of the chemical markers.