Chemical Profiling and Applications of Lemon (Citrus limon) and Orange (Citrus sinensis) fruit peels Essential oils for flavoring as a means for municipal waste Management

Abstract

Although the peels of lemon and orange fruits are considered as a waste the essential oil extracted from them is important for food flavoring, pharmaceuticals, cosmetics and detergent production. In this work, essential oils were extracted from fresh fruit peels of lemon (1.5%) and orange (3.4%) by hydro-distillation and their physiochemical properties were recorded. The chemical composition of the essential oils was also analyzed by GC-MS. Lemon fruit peel oil was composed of 12 compounds of which limonene (49.74%) was the main component and similarly orange fruit peel oil contained four compounds with limonene (95.19%) as major ingredient. The major component of the orange fruit peel oil was isolated by silica gel column chromatography and its structure was elucidated by NMR spectroscopy. In the meanwhile, it is possible to use the lemon and orange peels as the source of limonene, an important known bioactive compound. Raw lemon peel is applicable as a flavoring agent for baking bread, whereas the fruit leftovers can be used for compost preparation, and in the course municipal dry waste management can be improved.