Identification of Three Dalbergia Species Based on Differences in Extractive Components

Dalbergia cultrate, Dalbergia latifolia, and Dalbergia melanoxylon are precious and valuable traded timber species of the genus Dalbergia. For chemotaxonomical discrimination between these easily confused species, the total extractive content of the three wood species was determined using four different organic solvents. Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy was used to analyze functional group differences in the extractive components, inferring the types of principal chemical components according to characteristic peak positions, intensities, and shapes. Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) was carried out a detailed characterization of the extractive components. The relative content of individual chemical components was determined by area normalization. Results revealed differences in the chemical components and total and individual extract contents of the three Dalbergia species, indicating that FTIR and GC-MS spectroscopy can be applied to identify and discriminate between Dalbergia cultrate, Dalbergia latifolia, and Dalbergia melanoxylon.