Work

Simultaneous Profiling of Terpenes and Cannabinoids in Hemp Essential Oils Using Static Headspace Gas Chromatography–Mass Spectrometry for Quality Control and Chemotype Differentiation

Year: 2025

Type: article

Abstract: Hemp essential oils are rich in bioactive compounds, including terpenes and cannabinoids, yet standardized analytical methods for their simultaneous quality control are limited. This study aimed to (i) validate a static headspace gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (SHS-GC-MS) method for simultaneous quantification of 20 terpenes and 2 cannabinoids and (ii) apply it to fingerprint essential oils from four hemp strains, including local (HRDI2, HRDI5) and internationally cultivated (Charlotte’s Angel, Cherry Wine) varieties. The method met AOAC validation criteria, with detection limits of 0.025–0.5 µg/mL for terpenes and 1 µg/mL for cannabinoids. Quantitation limits ranged from 0.1–1 µg/mL for terpenes and 5 µg/mL for cannabinoids. Intraday precision (%RSD) ranged from 0.27–11.00%, while interday precision ranged from 3.14–13.89%. The method recoveries ranged from 85.12–115.47%. Precision and recovery confirmed the method’s reliability. Multivariate statistical analysis identified 82 metabolites, revealing distinct chemical fingerprints among strains, and emerged as newly identified chemotype markers, supporting chemotype classification. This work demonstrates, for the first time, a solvent-free, automatable SHS-GC-MS approach for simultaneous terpene and cannabinoid profiling in hemp essential oils, enabling both qualitative and quantitative characterization and supporting regulatory compliance for the development of standardized phytopharmaceutical products.

Source: Scientia Pharmaceutica

DOI: 10.3390/scipharm93020027