Obtaining high-quality oil from monguba (Pachira aquatica Aubl.) seeds by using supercritical CO2 process

Abstract

Monguba seeds show high content of extractable oil, approximately 54% (w/w). Literature data have reported the recovery of monguba seed oil using conventional methods. However, the use of emerging and environment-friendly methods should be applied, especially the supercritical fluid process. Therefore, we evaluated herein the effect of supercritical CO2 process (15–35 MPa and 40–60 °C) on yield, fatty acid profile, tocopherols content, and antioxidant activity of monguba oil. The highest global yield (39.64 g/100 g) was obtained by using 35 MPa and 60 °C. Palmitic acid was the main fatty acid, which partially justifies the highest global yield observed at 60 °C. Supercritical process operated at 60 °C, 35 MPa for 160 min showed global yield equal to the Soxhlet method. The use of supercritical CO2 allows the recovery of high content of high-quality monguba oil without affecting the antioxidant activity and the γ-tocopherol content.