Grape production is one of the most widespread agricultural activities, but it also generates a lot of waste. Grape seeds, which are used for oil extraction, are one of the most important of these wastes.
The most well-known methods of extracting the oil are: extraction with an organic solvent (hexane), cold pressing and extraction with supercritical carbon dioxide (CO2). We used these methods to extract the seeds from six different grape varieties: pinela, sauvignon, pinot blanc, riesling, cabernet sauvignon, refosco. We found out that CO2 extraction yielded the highest yields, followed by hexane extraction and cold pressing.
The fatty acid composition of the extracted grape seed oils was analysed by gas chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry (GC-MS). Linoleic acid was represented in the largest proportion, regardless of the extraction technique used, followed by oleic, stearic and palmitic acids. Myristic acid content varied the most depending on the grape variety. We found out that the extraction method had no significant effect on the fatty acid composition.
The quality of the oil is also determined by the unsaponifiable substances, and in this research the content of tocopherols and phenolic compounds in grape seed oils was also determined. The tocopherol content was determined by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). δ-Tocopherols were not detected in any of the samples. The highest α- and β-tocopherol content was found in the hexane extraction samples. The content of phenolic compounds was determined by the Folin-Ciocalteu method. From the results we conclude that hexane extraction yields more phenolic compounds than cold pressing.
The equivalent of the gallic acid in the oil was determined by the DPPH method, as the oil is known for its antioxidant activity. Samples were prepared with DMSO and ethanol. For the samples diluted with DMSO, the results showed that the extraction method did not affect the antioxidant activity. However, for the samples diluted with ethanol, the highest antioxidant activity was found in the hexane samples.
|