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Extraction and Analysis of Microbial Phospholipid Fatty Acids in Soils
Published on: August 26, 2016
Supercritical Carbon Dioxide Extraction of Astaxanthin, Lutein, and Fatty Acids from
Giuseppe Di Sanzo1, Sanjeet Mehariya2,3, Maria Martino4
1ENEA, Italian National Agency for New Technologies, Energy and Sustainable Economic Development, Department of Sustainability, CR Trisaia SS Jonica 106, km 419+500, 75026 Rotondella, Italy. giuseppe.disanzo@enea.it.
Abstract:
Haematococcus pluvialis microalgae in the red phase can produce significant amounts of astaxanthin, lutein, and fatty acids (FAs), which are valuable antioxidants in nutraceutics and cosmetics. Extraction of astaxanthin, lutein, and FAs from disrupted biomass of the H. pluvialis red phase using carbon dioxide (CO₂) in supercritical fluid extraction (SFE) conditions was investigated using a bench-scale reactor in a semi-batch configuration. In particular, the effect of extraction time (20, 40, 60, 80, and 120 min), CO₂ flow rate (3.62 and 14.48 g/min) temperature (50, 65, and 80 °C), and pressure (100, 400, and 550 bar.) was explored. The results show the maximum recovery of astaxanthin and lutein achieved were 98.6% and 52.3%, respectively, at 50 °C and 550 bars, while the maximum recovery of FAs attained was 93.2% at 65 °C and 550 bars.
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