Abstract
<jats:p>A comparative study of the optical properties of essential oils obtained by water-steam distillation and subcritical CO2 extracts from different anatomical parts of five types of plant raw materials – ginger, peppermint, nutmeg, cinnamon, cloves, and a series of auxiliary substances that are the dominant components in the system of the studied samples and their blends – was conducted using Fourier IR spectroscopy and refractometry. The use of auxiliary substances and blending allowed us to identify the areas of the spectrum where the characteristic bands of the main components of the extracts are most clearly identified, depending on the nature of the plant raw material and the technological features of the extraction methods. The potential of the express Fourier IR spectroscopy method for assessing the quality of extracts from both specialized technologies in various fields of application has been noted.</jats:p>