Characterization of the chemical composition of a byproduct from siam benzoin gum.

The mixture of bark and gum obtained after size-grading of Siam benzoin gum was studied to establish its potential application as a valuable new grade of the balsamic resin. An analysis of its volatile constituents by means of static headspace and SPME led to the identification of 26 and 50 compounds, respectively. Significant differences were observed in both the headspace composition and olfactory properties of the byproduct as compared to those of Siam benzoin gum. This prompted the further analysis of its volatile extract and its resinoid by GC techniques, resulting in the identification of 60 (99.5%) and 16 (89.1%) components, respectively. To examine the influence of bark pieces, different extracts obtained from the raw material and from a sorted sample were analyzed by GC and HPLC techniques. The chemical compositions and the yields determined for the two resinoids lead to the conclusion that this harvesting byproduct is a new grade of Siam benzoin gum, providing interesting olfactory notes that differ from those of other grades.