Molecular Structure, Electronic Properties, Reactivity (ELF, LOL, and Fukui), and NCI-RDG Studies of the Binary Mixture of Water and Essential Oil of Phlomis bruguieri

Essential oils are volatile oil-like liquids with a characteristic strong smell and taste. They are formed in plants and are then extracted. Essential oils have extremely strong physiological and pharmacological properties, which are used in the medicine, cosmetics, and food industries. In this study, the molecules caryophyllene oxide, beta-pinene, 1,8-cineol, a-cubebene, and b-caryophyllene, which are the molecules with the highest contents in the essential oil of the plant mentioned in the title, were selected and theoretical calculations describing their interactions with water were performed. Because oil-water mixtures are very important in biology and industry and are ubiquitous in nature, quantum chemical calculations for binary mixtures of water with caryophyllene oxide, beta-pinene, 1,8-cineol, a-cubebene, and beta-caryophyllene were performed using the density functional theory (DFT)/B3LYP method with a basis of 6-31 G (d, p). Molecular structures, HOMO-LUMO energies, electronic properties, reactivity (ELF, LOL, and Fukui), and NCI-RDG and molecular electrostatic potential (MEP) on surfaces of the main components of Phlomis bruguieri Desf. essential oil were calculated and described.

Automated summary

In this study, theoretical calculations were performed to investigate the interactions between the main components of Phlomis bruguieri Desf. essential oil and water. The molecules caryophyllene oxide, beta-pinene, 1,8-cineol, a-cubebene, and b-caryophyllene, which have the highest contents in the essential oil, were selected for the calculations. The results provide important insights into the properties of oil-water mixtures, which are important in biology and industry.