Effect of thermal treatment and light irradiation on the stability of lycopene with high Z-isomers content

The stability of lycopene with high Z-isomers content during thermal treatment and light irradiation was investigated. Purified (all-E)-lycopene was thermally isomerized to the Z-isomers in dichloromethane (CH2Cl2) at 50 °C for 24 h. The total content of the Z-isomers of lycopene reached 56.1%. Then, the mixture of lycopene isomers was stored in the dark at 4, 25, and 40 °C for 30 days, and under light irradiation using a fluorescent light at 4 °C for 336 h. The degradation rate of lycopene during thermal treatment rose with increasing temperature and the activation energy for decomposition of the mixture of lycopene isomers was calculated to be 71.0 kJ mol−1. The degradation rate of lycopene isomers was almost the same under thermal treatment. On the other hand, during light irradiation, isomerization was promoted rather than decomposition, i.e. (9Z)- and (13Z)-lycopene converted to the (all-E)-isomer.