Comparative Analysis of Essential Oil Contents of Tuberose (Polianthes tuberosa) by Supercritical Fluid Extraction (SFE) Method Grown at Different Regions

A research project was carried out with the objective of comparing the composition and quantity of essential oil of Polianthes tuberosa obtained from two different regions i.e. Pattoki and Faisalabad. To avoid volatilization losses the flowers were collected in the morning time and after preparation, the oil was extracted through supercritical fluid extraction method using CO₂ as the solvent. The quantity of oil obtained, differed in both cases as more oil was obtained from flowers of Pattoki region and less oil was obtained from flowers of Faisalabad region. The difference in the yield of essential oil of both regions was due to the variation in temperature, seasonal rainfall, wind speed and humidity of both regions. The quantity of absolute oil obtained from flower of Pattoki region was 3 g per 20 Kg of tuberose samples while in case of Faisalabad region was only 2 g per 20 Kg of tuberose. Physical and chemical analysis like color, refractive index, optical rotation, congealing point, acid number, ester number, etc., were different in both cases. The comparison of the chemical composition of oils revealed significant differences among the quantities of all components in both oils.