Hydrophilic Extracts of the Bark from Six Pinus Species

Pine barks are important biomass resources because they are utilised in the production of pine wood and rosins. However, no chemical study has been conducted on the hydrophilic status of pine barks in Indonesia. This aim of this study is to explore the hydrophilic extracts of the barks from six Pinus species (P. elliotii, P. caribeae, P. oocarpa, P. merkusii P. montezumae, and P. insularis). The hydrophilics of pine barks were analysed using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. The presence of polyphenol contents in the ethanol extracts obtained from the barks of six Pinus species was determined using the tannin-formaldehyde method, Folin-Cioucalteu assay, and vanillin-HCl assay. The ethanol and hot water soluble extractives derived from inner barks were higher in quantity when compared to those derived from the outer bark samples. The polyphenol measurement showed that the highest value of total phenol content was derived from the outer bark of P. montezumae whereas those of the total phenol and tannin- formaldehyde contents were derived from the inner and outer barks of P. oocarpa. GC-MS analysis revealed that nitrogenous compounds are dominant constituents in the inner and outer barks of the six species, followed by sugars and monophenolics, respectively.