Study of composition and yield of Thymus vulgaris L. oil essential

The essential oil yield and quality on aromatic species is regulated by environmental conditions and vegetative development. The objective of this work was to evaluate the yield and composition of Thymus vulgaris L. essential oil from nearby Curitiba, PR. The essential oil was obtained from aerial fresh plants by hydrodistillation. The extraction was done during 1, 2 and 3h. The components identification was performed by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS) and for quantification the equipment used was a gas chromatography with flame detector (GC/MS). There were identified and quantified thirty three components. The majority components were thymol, carvacrol and borneol. The best oil yield of 1.86% for fresh plants with aerial parts was obtained when used extraction time of 3h, however, no significant differences were found on components concentration for all the three extraction times.