The effect of solvent type and extraction duration on purple corn anthocyanin compounds (Zea Mays L)

Abstract

The development of the food processing industry and the limited amount and quality of natural dyes cause an increase in the use of synthetic dyes. Since the discovery of synthetic dyes, the use of pigments as dyes has decreased. Therefore the use of natural dyes needs to be raised again. Purple corn (Zea Mays L) has the potential as a natural food coloring due to its high anthocyanin content. Anthocyanins can act as natural dyes, antioxidants, antimutagenic, and anti-carcinogens. This study aimed to determine the solvent and extraction duration of purple corn dye on yield and anthocyanin levels. The study was conducted by the maceration extraction method (in which simple filtering was done by soaking purple corn in ethanol 96% and water at room temperature and protected from sunlight) using maceration time (5 hours, 10 hours, 15 hours, 20 hours). The extraction results are then filtered and then analyzed using a UV-Vis spectrophotometer. From this study, it was found that there was an effect of the type of solvent and the length of time of extraction on the yield and levels of anthocyanin obtained. it shows that the best treatment in extracting anthocyanin of a Purple Corn is to use ethanol solution and 20 hours of maceration time, which produces 577.78 mg/l of anthocyanin.