Volatile components of peel and leaf oils of lemon and lime species.

Peel and leaf oils of 43 taxa of lemons and limes were obtained from fruits and leaves collected from trees submitted to the same pedoclimatic and cultural conditions. Their chemical composition was investigated by capillary GC, GC-MS, and (13)C NMR, and the results were submitted to principal component analysis to check for chemical variability. Three major chemotypes were distinguished for lemon peel oils: limonene; limonene/beta-pinene/gamma-terpinene; and limonene/linalyl acetate/linalool. Two chemotypes were identified for lemon leaf oils: limonene/beta-pinene/geranial/neral and linalool/linalyl acetate/alpha-terpineol. In lime peel oils, four chemotypes were distinguished: limonene; limonene/gamma-terpinene; limonene/beta-pinene/gamma-terpinene; and limonene/gamma-terpinene/beta-pinene/oxygenated products. Four others were identified for lime leaf oils: beta-pinene/limonene; limonene/geranial/neral; limonene/linalool/citronellal; and limonene/sabinene/citronellal/linalool. These results were interpreted using principal component analysis.