What are the key aromatic compounds in this lemongrass oil?
The defining compound of this lemongrass oil is citral — the sum of the two isomers neral (citral a) and geranial (citral b). Citral accounts for roughly 60% of a typical industrial batch and at least 75% by FCC/ISO assay (carbonyl as citral). Myrcene is the second marker compound and must stay below 20% by GC, otherwise the batch is suspected of being harvested too early or adulterated with cheap turpentine terpenes.
Key Compounds
| Compound | CAS | Typical level in a real batch | Role |
|---|---|---|---|
| Citral (neral + geranial) | 5392-40-5 | 60.34% (typical industrial batch); ≥75% by FCC/ISO assay | Main aroma & marker, allergens trigger |
| Myrcene | 123-35-3 | <20% (upper limit by DB45) | Secondary marker; early-harvest / adulteration check |
| Geraniol | 106-24-1 | 4.08% | Rose-like sweetness, allergens trigger |
| D-Limonene | 5989-27-5 | 4.90% | Citrus freshness, allergens trigger |
| Linalool | 78-70-6 | 3.03% | Floral lift, allergens trigger |
| Citronellal | 106-23-0 | 0.19% | Trace, allergens trigger |
| Isocitral | 55722-59-3 | 0.54% | Trace |
- Quality control locks citral by two independent methods: the classical NaHSO3 adduct volumetric assay and GC-FID area normalisation (ISO 11024-1)
- Optical rotation outside -3° to +1° strongly suggests adulteration with citrus terpenes or citronella oil
- Every batch is released with a GC-MS fingerprint so you can verify the citral level against your own specification
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This article was published on 2026-09-07, and last updated on 2026-09-07. The article will be continuously updated.
