Tracing the geographic origin of wood in pulp and paper by GC-MS analysis of extractives

Abstract This study explores the application of chemotaxonomic methods to trace the geographic origin of wood used in paper production. Utilizing thermal desorption gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (TD-GC-MS) and principal component analysis (PCA), distinct chemical profiles were identified in both hydrophobic and hydrophilic extracts. Residual wood extractives, that are capable of origin differentiation, were found in acetone extracts of the CITES-protected genus ramin ( Gonystylus Teijsm. et Binn. spp.), petroleum ether extracts of red meranti ( Rubroshorea (Meijer) P.S.Ashton et J.Heck. spp.) and n-hexane extracts of teak ( Tectona grandis L.f.) pulp. The PCA results demonstrate the potential of these chemical fingerprints to serve as reliable indicators of wood provenance, which could potentially be crucial for the practical execution of the European Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) and the US Lacey Act in the paper industry. Despite the promising findings for ramin and teak, the effectiveness of the method to distinguish the origin of red meranti pulps was limited in some cases.