Determination of Rose Alcohol Composition in Extracts and Flowers via Headspace Solid-Phase Microextraction and GC-MS

Natural extracts of rose are frequently subject to adulteration due to their high production costs and strong demand within the flavor and fragrance industry. Gas chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry (GC-MS) serves as a critical analytical tool for detecting adulterants and quantifying the relative concentrations of key rose alcohols. In this study, rose fragrances were analyzed by using GC-MS to assess compositional integrity. Standard accords consisted of six synthetic compounds with varying molecular weights, boiling points, and polarities, commonly found in rose essential oils and perfumes. Each component was baseline resolved on a nonpolar column and detectable at low concentrations (3-5%). Calibration curves were developed for phenyl ethyl alcohol, citronellol, and geraniol based on representative concentrations in commercial samples. Principal component analysis (PCA) was performed to further characterize and differentiate the accords according to their chemical profiles. Additionally, headspace solid-phase microextraction (HS-SPME) was used to sample the volatile profile of each sample on a fragrance strip. Several commercial samples, including two natural rose extracts (absolute and oil) and a commercial perfume, and a peony flower, were analyzed using liquid direct injection and/or HS-SPME. These results demonstrate the utility of GC-MS and HS-SPME for both quantitative and qualitative analysis of rose alcohols in complex fragrance matrices.