Isolation of essential oil and supercritical carbon dioxide extract of Juniperus communis L. fruits from Montenegro

Ripe fruits (berries) of common juniper (Juniperus communis L.) from northern Montenegro were extracted by hydrodistillation and by supercritical carbon dioxide (SC-CO2) in a single-stage separation system. The composition of the extracts was evaluated by GC-FID and GC-MS. A total of 38 different compounds were identified and significant differences (qualitative and quantitative) were observed between the hydrodistilled oil and the SC-CO2 extracts. In the hydrodistilled oil, major compounds were: a-pinene (28.6-38.2%), sabinene (15.7-20.5%) and myrcene (7.2-18.2%). In the SC-CO2 extracts, major compounds were: a-pinene (7.7-30.3%), myrcene (4.5-20.5%) and germacrene B and D (similar to 6%). The analysis of the results has shown that the grinding process has a significant influence on the yield and chemical composition of essential oil. In SC-CO2 extraction different pressures were applied and the best process performance regarding chemical composition of the extract and its organoleptic quality was obtained at 90 bar and 40 degrees C in the extraction vessel. Copyright (c) 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.