A study on the extraction of essential oil of Persian black cumin using static supercritical CO₂ extraction, and comparison with hydro-distillation extraction method

ABSTRACT

The essential oil of Persian black cumin was extracted using static supercritical CO₂ technique at different temperatures, extraction times, and number of extractions. The composition of extracted oil was measured by GC-MS analysis and 25 components were identified. It was found that the oil recovery was reduced by increasing the temperature. Maximum recovery was achieved at two-step extraction that was about 49%. Both dissolution rate and solubility limited the oil recovery at the tested extraction conditions. The oxygenate components have less dissolution rate than the terpenes. The application of experimental data for design of an efficient dynamic extraction system was discussed.

KEYWORDS:

• Supercritical extraction
• hydrodistillation
• bunium persicum
• CO₂
• essential oils

Acknowledgments

The GC/MS analysis of the extracted essential oils was done in the Department of Phytochemistry of Medicinal Plants and Drugs, Research Institute of Shahid Beheshti University in Tehran, which is acknowledged.

Additional information

Funding

This research did not receive any specific grant from funding agencies in the public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors.