Direct analysis of essential oils by means of TXRF spectrometry

Abstract

Direct analysis of essential oil has been performed for estimation of the elemental content in five different extracted essential oils from the leaves of different plants, namely, Mentha longifolia, Rosmarinus officinalis, Ocimum basilicum, Elletaria cardamomum, and Lavandula hybrida. A benchtop total reflection X-ray fluorescence spectrometer with a maximum power of 40 W was used for this purpose. Fourteen elements have been quantified in most of the extracted essential oil samples, and their limits of detection were determined. The detected elements are P, S, Cl, K, Ca, Cr, Mn, Fe, Ni, Cu, Zn, As, Br, Ni, and Hf. The validity of the present method was demonstrated using a standard reference material of organometallic oil sample. Two extraction methods of essential oils from leaves of the mentioned plants are evaluated, namely, classical hydro-distillation and microwave-assisted hydro-distillation. The quantitative elemental analysis of the extracted essential oils using the two extracted methods was studied and compared.

Analytical performance of Compton/Rayleigh signal ratio by total reflection X‐ray fluorescence (TXRF): A potential methodological tool for sample differentiation

“…Total reflection X‐ray fluorescence (TXRF) spectroscopy is a technique that is often used for the direct analysis of elemental composition 1–5 and has been well received by the community of researchers and users, mainly because of its major attributes: nondestructive, good sensitivity, multielement analysis, and low operational costs. It consists of the excitation of a sample with an X‐ray beam at an angle <0.1°, and the detection of the fluorescence emitted by the sample at an angle ≈ 90° 6 .…”