MICROSTRUCTURE OF AGARWOOD: A RELATION BETWEEN OIL EXTRACTION, CELL MORPHOLOGY AND SOAKING TIME

A correlation between oil extraction, cell morphology and soaking time behaviour has been studied based on the microstructure of agarwood chips collected from Molvibazar, Bangladesh. The tree was identified as Aquilaria Malaccensis (L). Resin was produced by iron nailing method in the tree trunk. The hydration and chips making effects were reflected from extracted oil yield and the required time. Microscopy analysis was conducted to evaluate the microstructure of the agarwood in relation to oil extraction, cell morphology and soaking time. Variable soaking time (0 to 50 days) was analysed by its moisture content. Conventional water distillation process was carried out for oil extraction and hence quantified after 120 h for all samples. It is revealed that- (a) fresh wood does not require for soaking, (b) semi-dried or dried wood give better extraction efficiency after 10 to 20 days soaking, (c) longer soaking time destroy the oil quality, (d) extraction time and efficiency are strongly dependent on the thickness of the chips. These results are explained based on the morphology of agarwood chips cells.