Effect of ozonation on the essential oil composition of dried aromatic plants

Abstract

Ozonation as an alternative method for the disinfection of dried herb material shows promising results concerning the microbial load reduction. However, there is not enough data about the effect of the method on the essential oil quality. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of ozone on the essential oil content and composition of dried oregano, thyme and lemon verbena. Quantitative and qualitative essential oil measurements were performed before and after ozonation. The results showed that in cases of oregano and lemon verbena, no statistically significant difference was observed either in total essential oil content or on any of their compound concentration. However ozonation may affect the concentration of some components since in the case of thyme the concentration of 8 compounds decreased. Copyright © 2017 for this paper by its author