Abstract: Through the chromatographic analysis method,researches were carried out on the dynamic variation rules of volatiles and flavonoids in Citrus Peel under the condition of simulated accelerated test,in order to explore the scientific connotation of the concept of “the older one is the better one” for Citri Reticulatae Pericarpium (CRP).With GC-MS and AMDIS combined with Kovats retention index (RI),an analysis was made for volatile components extracted using static headspace;flavonoid content in samples was measured through HPLC-DAD and UV spectrophotometry method.The result showed the contents of volatile components were all decreased and those with low boiling points had a more significant declination;the flavonoids component content of total flavonoids and hesperidin tended to increase at first and then decrease,while the content of nobiletin had an increasing tendency.When simulated accelerated test method was used to study the dynamic variation of the chemical components of traditional Chinese medicine in storage,the result was satisfactory.But there was limitation for the index component content variation to represent the characteristic variation of overall efficacy composition in CRP.A characteristic spectrum of chemical properties should be researched and established for the main efficient materials of CRP in storage,so as to explain the scientific connotation of the concept of “the older one is the better one” for CRP at the point of material basic variation.

Key words: Citri reticulatae pericarpium, the older,the better, volatile components, flavonoids, simulated accelerated test