Extraction of essential oil from Cyperus articulatus L. var. articulatus (priprioca) with pressurized CO2

• The process for supercritical extraction of priprioca oil showed to be more efficient than the hydrodistillation extraction process;.
• The yields obtained in the region with one phase were 40% higher than the values obtained in the region with two phases.
• The extracts showed antifungal activity against Cladosporium sphaerospermum ATCC 4464 and antibacterial activity against Staphylococcus aureus ATCC 25923.

The main goal of this study was to assess the yield and the antimicrobial activity of extracts from Cyperus articulatus L. var. articulatus obtained by pressurized carbon dioxide based on their system phase diagram behavior. The extractions were carried out at 313, 323, 333 K temperatures and, 13 and 25 MPa pressures. The extracts were quantified and chemically characterized by using gas chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry technique. The extracts obtained at the following experimental conditions: 333 K and 13 MPa, showed antifungal activity against Cladosporium sphaerospermum ATCC 4464. At 323 K – 25 MPa, and 333 K – 25 MPa, the extracts showed antibacterial activity against Staphylococcus aureus ATCC 25923. To describe the kinetics of extraction with a packed bed, a mathematical model was employed highlighting the transference mechanisms for masses in the pseudo-binary system as follows (1) carbon dioxide and (2) priprioca extract, the monophasic and multiphasic regions.

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