Extraction of Essential Oils from the Flowers ofOsmanthus fragransvar.aurantiacusUsing an Ionic Liquid

Abstract The essential oil components linalool, β-ionone, cis- and trans-linalool oxide pyranoid, and trans-linalool oxide furanoid, which are found in the flowers of Osmanthus fragrans var. aurantiacus, were efficiently extracted using a cellulose-dissolving ionic liquid 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium methylphosphonate ([C2mim][(MeO)(H)PO2]) as an extraction solvent. Investigation of extraction time revealed that the ionic liquid contributed to the efficient extraction of these essential oils over a shorter extraction time. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and fluorescence microscopy observations of the flower petals confirmed the efficiency of the ionic liquid in this extraction process.