Chemical Composition of the Essential Oils from the Leaves of Three Eucalyptus Species Growing In Nigeria

Abstract

The leaf oils of Eucalyptus microtheca F. Muell., Eucalyptus tereticornis Smith and Eucalyptus grandis W. Hill ex Maiden were analyzed by means of GC and GC/MS. The dominant compounds were 1, 8-cineole (53.8%) in E.microtheca, α-pinene (21.4% and 30.4%) in E. tereticornis and E. grandis, respectively, and β-pinene (39.4%) in E.tereticornis. The absence of 1,8-cineole in the oils of E. tereticornis and E.grandis is peculiar.

Key Word Index:

• Eucalyptus microtheca
• Eucalyptus tereticornis
• Eucalyptus grandis
• Myrtaceae
• essential oil composition
• 1,8-cineole
• α-pinene
• β-pinene