Extraction and surface activity of tea saponin from Pu'er tea seeds

Abstract

Tea saponin was extracted from Pu'er Tea seeds using the ultrasound-ethanol method, the factors influencing the extraction rate were investigated, the extract was characterized and identified, and then the surface activity of the obtained tea saponin was explored from the aspects of surface tension, foamability and foam stability and detergency. The results show that the optimal extraction conditions include extraction time: 80 min, temperature: 70°C, liquid-solid ratio: 8:1, critical micelle concentration (CMC): 0.05%, and the surface tension is 30.01 mN/m under CMC concentration; the tea saponin has excellent foamability, high foam stability and strong detergency under CMC concentration.