Email this article Abstract
Gaharu (Agarwood) is described as a fragrant-smelling wood that is usually derived from the trunk of the genus Aquilaria and Gyrinops (both of the family Thymelaeaceae), which have been infected by a particular disease. Based on Indonesian National Standard, agarwood can be classified into various grades, i.e. gubal gaharu, kemedangan and serbuk gaharu. The grading system is based on the color, weight and odor. It seems that such a grading is too subjective for agarwood classification. Therefore, to minimize the subjectivity, more objective agarwood grading is required, which incorporates its chemical composition and resin content. This research was conducted focusing on the analysis of the particular grade of agarwood originating from West Sumatra. The different types of agarwood qualities are: kemedangan C, teri C, kacangan C and super AB. Initially, the obtained agarwood samples were grounded to powder, extracted on a Soxhlet extractor using various organic solvents (i.e. n-hexane, acetone, and methanol). The agarwood-acetone extracts were analyzed using GC-MS to determine its chemical composition. The results showed a positive, linier relationship in which the resin yield increased with the increase in agarwood quality grades. GC-MS analysis revealed that several sesquiterpene groups can be found in kemedangan C, teri C, kacangan C and super AB qualities. It is interesting that aromadendrene could be identified or found in all agarwood quality grades. Therefore, it is presumed that the aromadendrene compounds can act as an effective chemical distinguisher for agarwood, whereby the greater the aromadendrene content, the better is the agarwood grade.
Keywords
Full Text:
PDFReferences
American Society for Testing and Materials(ASTM). (1997). ASTM-D 297-93: Standard test methods for rubber products – Chemical analysis. West Conshohocken, USA: American Society for Testing of Materials.
Badan Standardisasi Nasional. (2011). Agarwood Indonesian National Standard SNI 7631:2011 (SNI.01-5009.1-1999) (in Bahasa Indonesia). Indonesia: Badan Standardisasi Nasional.
Balfas, J. (2009). Resin content on the low-grade agarwood. Journal of Forest Product Research, 27(2), 97–105.
Burfield, T. (2005). Agarwood chemistry. Retrieved August 03, 2009, from http://www.cropwat. org/Agarchem.html.
Chen, C.T., Yeh, Y.T., Chao, D., & Chen, C.Y. (2013). Chemical constituent from the wood of Aquilaria sinensis. Chemistry of Natural Compounds, 49(1), 113–114.
Chen, H.Q., Wei, J.H., Yang, J.L., Ziang, Z., Yang, Y., Gao, J.-H. Gong, B. (2012). Review : Chemical constituens of agarwood originating from the endemic genus Aquilaria plants. Chemistry and Biodiversity, 9, 236–250.
Harborne, J.B. (1987). Phytochemical methods: A Guide to Modern Techniques of Plant Analysis (2ndEd.) (in Bahasa Indonesia). Bandung: ITB.
Ishara, M., Tsuneya, T., & Uneyama, K. (1993). Fragrant sesquiterpenes from agarwood. Phytochemistry, 33(5), 1147–1155.
Mashur. (2009). Market opportunities of cultivated agarwood (in Bahasa Indonesia). Paper presented at The 1st National Seminar of Agarwood, Bogor 12 November 2009.
Nakanishi, T., Yamagata, E., Yoneda, K., Nagashima, T., Kawasaki, I., Yoshida, T., Miura, I. (1984). Three fragrant sesquiterpenes of agarwood. Phytochemistry, 23, 2066–2067.
Pasaribu, G., Waluyo, T.K., & Pari, G. (2013). Analisys of chemical compound in some of agarwood quality by gas chromatography mass spectrometry. Journal of Forest Product Research, 31(3), 181–185.
Salampessy, F. (2009). Strategy and technique marketing of agarwood in Indonesia. Paper presented at Workshop of technology development of agarwood production based on forest communities empowerment, Bogor 29 April 2009 (in Bahasa Indonesia).
Santosa, H. (2009). Conservation and utilization of agarwood. Paper presented at The 1st National Seminar of Agarwood, Bogor 12 November 2009. (in Bahasa Indonesia)
Sidiyasa, K., & Suharti, M. (1986). Types of plants producing agarwood (in Bahasa Indonesia). Paper presented at Discussion of lesser known timber trees utilization at Bogor in 1996.
Sumarna, Y. (2002). Cultivation and Production Engineering of Tree Species Producing Agarwood (in Bahasa Indonesia). Paper presented at Sosialisasi Gaharu di Gorontalo.
Waluyo, T.K., & Anwar, F. (2012). Chemical component identification of four agarwood grades: Kacangan A. Teri B. Kamedangan A and Kamedangan B. Journal of Forest Product Research, 30(4), 291–300.
Yoneda, K., Yamagata, E., Nakanishi, T., Nagashima, T., Kawasaki, I., Yoshida, T., … Miura, I. (1984). Sesquiterpenoids in two different kinds of agarwood. Phytochemistry, 23(21), 2068–2069.
Refbacks
- There are currently no refbacks.
