Instant controlled pressure drop technology and ultrasound assisted extraction for sequential extraction of essential oil and antioxidants

The instant controlled pressure drop (DIC) technology enabled both the extraction of essential oil and the expansion of the matrix itself which improved solvent extraction. The sequential use of DIC and Ultrasound Assisted Extraction (UAE) triggered complementary actions materialized by supplementary effects. We visualized these combination impacts by comparing them to standard techniques: Hydrodistillation (HD) and Solvent Extraction (SE). First, the extraction of orange peel Essential Oils (EO) was achieved by HD during 4 h and DIC process (after optimization) during 2 min; EO yields was 1.97 mg/g dry material (dm) with HD compared to 16.57 mg/g dm with DIC. Second, the solid residue was recovered to extract antioxidant compounds (naringin and hesperidin) by SE and UAE. Scanning electron microscope showed that after HD the recovered solid shriveled as opposite to DIC treatment which expanded the product structure. HPLC analyses showed that the best kinetics and yields of naringin and hesperidin extraction was when DIC and UAE are combined. Indeed, after 1 h of extraction, DIC treated orange peels with UAE were 0.825 ± 1.6 × 10−2 g/g of dry material (dm) for hesperidin and 6.45 × 10−2 ± 2.3 × 10−4 g/g dm for naringin compared to 0.64 ± 2.7 × 10−2 g/g of dry material (dm) and 5.7 × 10−2 ± 1.6 × 10−3 g/g dm, respectively with SE. By combining DIC to UAE, it was possible to enhance kinetics and yields of antioxidant extraction.

► Comparison of standard and innovative extraction processes.
► Sequential combination of instant controlled pressure drop and ultrasound extraction.
► Diffusivity and starting accessibility evaluation for antioxidant extraction.
► Structure modification after DIC treatment observed by scanning electron microscopy.