Efficacy of ultrasonic pre-treatment on extraction of clove (syzygium aromaticum) essential oil

¹ Amity Institute of Horticulture Studies and Research, Amity University, Noida, Uttar Pradesh, India
² Amity Food & Agricultural Foundation, Amity University, Noida, Uttar Pradesh, India

^* Corresponding Authors: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Abstract

Postharvest deterioration of horticultural crops remains a major food security problem, majorly due to fungal contamination and mycotoxin formation during storage and transportation. Clove essential oil considered a potential alternative with anti-fungal, anti- microbial properties. The extraction yield of clove essential oil (CEO) depends greatly on extraction method and operating conditions. The present study evaluated the effect of ultrasonic pre-treatment on CEO extraction during hydro-distillation using Response Surface Methodology (RSM) based on a two factor three-level Full Factorial Design. A sample were given ultrasonic pre-treatment in an ultrasonic water bath under different temperature (35−45 °C) and ultrasonication time (25−45 minutes) conditions and subjected to hydro-distillation for essential oil extraction. Experimental results showed that ultrasonic pre-treatment greatly affected CEO extraction. The maximum CEO yield of 8.62 % was obtained at 40 °C and 35 minutes, whereas the minimum yield of 4.68 % was recorded at 45 °C and 45 minutes treatment. The visualized response surface plots, contour plots, and interaction analysis validates significant combined effects of ultrasonic temperature and treatment time on extraction performance. The study showed that ultrasonic pre-treatment combined with hydro-distillation improved CEO extraction efficiency under optimized operating conditions.