Authentication of Lavandula angustifolia Mill. (Lamiaceae) essential oil using physical property, gas chromatography, enantiomeric selectivity, and stable isotope analyses

Authentic Lavandula angustifolia (lavender) essential oil samples (n = 41) were procured from six producing countries. Essential oils were analyzed to determine physical properties and to determine profiles and related data by GC/MS, GC/FID, enantioselective GC, and GC/IRMS. The current study identified 43 volatile compounds that were detected in all authentic lavender samples (n = 41), and which can be considered authentic markers. Enantiomeric ranges for 15 volatile compounds and stable isotope ranges for four prominent compounds were determined in authentic lavender. Authentic samples and associated data were used to assess the quality of commercially available lavender essential oil samples (n = 12). 75% of the commercial samples studied were adulterated,and 17 volatile compounds were detected in these samples which can be considered markers for adulteration. This study establishes the utility and importance of using a multifaceted analytical approach to differentiate quality and determine authenticity of lavender essential oil.本研究从6个生产国采购了41份正品狭叶薰衣草（Lavandula angustifolia）精油样品（n=41）。采用气相色谱-质谱联用（GC/MS）、气相色谱-氢火焰离子化检测器（GC/FID）、手性气相色谱（enantioselective GC）以及气相色谱-同位素比值质谱联用（GC/IRMS）等技术对精油进行分析，以测定其物理性质、成分谱图及相关数据。本研究在全部41份正品薰衣草精油样品中均检出43种挥发性化合物，可将其作为正品薰衣草精油的特征标记物。同时明确了15种挥发性化合物的对映体范围，以及4种特征性化合物的稳定同位素范围。利用上述正品精油样品及其关联数据，对12份市售薰衣草精油样品（n=12）的品质开展评估。本次评估的市售样品中有75%存在掺假行为，且在这些掺假样品中检出17种挥发性化合物，可作为薰衣草精油掺假的特征标记物。本研究证实了采用多维度分析方法鉴别薰衣草精油品质与真伪的实用性与重要性。