Essential oil of nutmeg pericarp

The composition of the volatile oil extracted by hydro-distillation from nutmeg pericarp and the component retention indices were determined by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry GC-MS. The oil contains 16 monoterpenes (60%), nine monoterpene alcohols (29%), eight aromatic ethers (7%), three sesquiterpenes (1%), six esters (1%) and eight other minor components. The components are similar to those in nutmeg and mace oils but differ substantially in concentrations. The sabinene, myristicin and safrole concentrations are much lower while the terpinen-4-ol and alpha-terpineol contents are much higher than in nutmeg and mace oils.