Ultrasound Assisted Extraction of Oleoresin from Nutmeg (Myristia Fragrans Houtt)

Abstract

In the present study, the application of ultrasound to extract oleoresin from nutmeg (Myristica fragrans Houtt) was investigated. The extraction of oleoresin from nutmeg meat was performed by using ethanol as solvent. Experiments were carried out under the following conditions: total weight of nutmeg meat of 200 g, the mass ratio of dry meat nutmeg to solvent of 1:4, the size of the material of-10+18 mesh and the ultrasonic frequency of 45 kHz; with variation of extraction temperature (30, 40 and 50°C), and extraction time (1, 2 and 3 hours). This research was also using maceration and soxhlet for comparison. The experimental results showed that the Soxhlet method requires a longer time and higher temperature to produce oleoresin compared with maceration and ultrasonic waves assisted extraction methods. The ultrasonic extraction resulted highest oleoresin yield of 6.2% was obtained at the condition of 50oC and 3 hours of extraction temperature and extraction time, respectively. The oleoresin produced in the experiment was analyzed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS), which showed that the two largest components in oleoresin are myristicin and eugenol.