Chemical composition of volatile oil from Cinnamomum zeylanicum buds.

The hydro-distilled volatile oil of the Cinnamomum zeylanicum (C. zeylanicum) buds was analyzed using GC and GC-MS for the first time. Thirty-four compounds representing approximately 98% of the oil was characterized. It consists of terpene hydrocarbons (78%) and oxygenated terpenoids (9%). alpha-Bergamotene (27.38%) and alpha-copaene (23.05%) are found to be the major compounds. A comparison of the chemical composition of the oil was made with that of flowers and fruits.