Analysis of the Essential Oils of Five Curcuma Species

The chemical composition of the essential oils from the rhizomes of five Curcuma species from Indonesia and India was examined by GC‐MS. The oils can be characterized by the following compounds: C. xanthorrhiza Roxb.: ar‐curcumene (41.4%), xanthorrhizol (21.5%); C. domestica Val.: ar‐turmerone (24.7%), turmerone (29.5%), turmerol (20.0%), α‐atlantone (2.4%); C. aromatica Salisb.: ar‐curcumene (18.6%), β‐curcumene (25.5%), xanthorrhizol (25.7%); C. aeruginosa Roxb.: isocurcumenol (8.5%), β‐eudesmol (6.5%), curdione (3.6%), curcumenol (9.9%), curcumanolides A,B (11.4%), dehydrocurdione (9.4%), curcumenone (1.9%); C. heyneana Val.: 1,8‐cineole/limonene (14.2%), isocurcumenol (7.4%), β‐eudesmol (4.7%), curcumanolides A,B (13.1%), dehydrocurdione (10.2%), curcumenone (2.3%).