Abstract:
The extraction with supercritical carbon dioxide (scCO2) is a mild and, regarding the yield and quality, efficient method for isolation of vegetable oils rich in essential fatty acids. The project consists in a study on the oil (extract) reaction with water or ethanol in scCO2 medium, catalyzed by a regiospecific enzyme, where the fatty acid profile in the reaction product depends on their different reaction rate, and a study on the possibility of separation of the fraction enriched in essential fatty acids from the reaction mixture, based on its different solubility in scCO2 and different affinity to a sorbent. The effect of conditions of reaction and fractionation carried out in continuous mode on their efficiency will be measured and the conditions will be optimized using stepwise elaborated mathematical models. The extraction, reaction, and fractionation will be integrated into one process.