ABSTRACT
AIM: To study a method for the determination of Zedoary turmeric oil microsphere (ZTO-MS). METHODS: ZTO-MS was extracted supersonically by solvent and then colored by sulfuric acid-vanillin reagent. The absorbance was measured by visible-spectrophotometry at 508nm. At the same time, ZTO-MS also could be determined by HPLC. RESULTS: The content of Zedoary turmeric oil was above 60% and the contents of Curdione、Curcuma、Germacrone were 6.88%,0.95%,5.0%, respectively, in ZTO-MS. CONCLUSION: Two methods for the determination of ZTO-MS are accurate, reliable; the method of visible-spectrophotometry is convenient and appropriate for determination for content of oil in ZTO-MS, while the method of HPLC gains the advantage for qualitative and quantitative analysis of components in ZTO-MS.