The essential oil constituents of air-dried rhizomes of Zingiber officinale Rosc. plant afforded from a local herb market in Northwest Iran were analyzed by GC / MS. Forty nine components were identified, comprising 95.9% of essential oil. Sesquiterpenoids (61.3%) were the principal class of identified components, followed by monoterpenoids (25.4%). Sesquiterpene hydrocarbons (56.9%) were the predominant subclass of volatile components, followed by monoterpene hydrocarbons (19.9%). α-Zingiberene, a highlighted sesquiterpene hydrocarbone (23.8%), was the major component of essential oil, followed by a great share of other mono- and sesquiterpene hydrocarbonic compounds such as ar-curcumene (9.2%), β-sesquiphellandrene (8.8%), sabinene (8.7%), (E-E)-α-farnesene (8.5%), camphene (6.3%) and α-pinene (2.6%). Citral (neral + geranial) (5.9%) had a minor share in the volatile oil profile. Borneol (2.3%), E,E-farnesol (1.5%) and 6-methyl-5-heptene-2-one (1.3%) were the other oxygenated compounds with the amounts exceeding one percent. There were quantitative but insignificant qualitative differences between the present study and previous reports from elsewhere. In total, the essential oil studied in the present experiment was characterized as α-zingiberene-rich source suitable for use in related industries.

Keywords: Zingiber officinale Rosc., Zingiberaceae, essential oil, α-zingiberene, ar-curcumene, Iranian herb market