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The Chemical Educator

ISSN: 1430-4171 (electronic version)

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Abstract Volume 6 Issue 1 (2001) pp 28-31

Qualitative Analysis of Citrus Fruit Extracts by GC/MS: An Undergraduate Experiment

Douglas C. Smith,* Shannon Forland, Evangelos Bachanos, Melony Matejka, and Valerie Barrett^‡

Department of Chemistry, California State University San Bernardino, San Bernardino, CA 92407 and ^‡Sunkist Growers, P.O. Box 3720, Ontario, CA 91761
Received August 20, 2000. Accepted December 1, 2000

Published online: 29 December 2000

Abstract. Rinds from a variety of citrus fruits (grapefruit, lemon, lime, navel and Valencia orange, tangerine, and tangelo) were extracted and analyzed using GC/MS. In this experiment, sophomore organic chemistry students explore extraction techniques and gas chromatography with mass spectrometry detection as well as the theory associated with these methods. Furthermore, the experiment provides students with an opportunity to learn about essential oils and terpenes. Background information on terpenes, the extraction protocol, and GC/MS conditions used for analysis is provided. A summary is given of the most frequently observed terpenes and terpenoids identified for each citrus fruit mentioned above.

Key Words:  Laboratories and Demonstrations; organic chemistry; GC/MS; chromatography

(*) Corresponding author. (E-mail: dcsmith@csusb.edu)

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Issue date: February 1, 2001

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