Journal of Food Processing & Technology

Green solvents for green extraction of biologically active compounds

19^th International Conference on Food Processing & Technology

October 23-25, 2017 | Paris, France

Ivana Radojcic Redovnikovic, Manuela Panic, Kristina Radosevic, Marina Cvjetko Bubalo, Natka Curko, Karin Kovacevic Ganic and Visnja Gaurina Srcek

University of Zagreb, Croatia

Scientific Tracks Abstracts: J Food Process Technol

Abstract:

According to the principles of green chemistry, the selection of a suitable solvent is based on workers' safety (toxicity, carcinogenicity, mutagenicity, absorption through the skin and respiratory system), process safety (flammability, explosiveness, volatility, creating the potential peroxide), environment protection (ecotoxicity, persistence, groundwater contamination, destruction of the ozone layer) and the sustainability of the process (the ability of recycling and repeated use possibility) meaning that green solvent should be chemically and physically stable, low volatility, easy to use and easy to recycle with the possibility of reuse. Over the last few years, natural deep eutectic solvents (NADES) have been dramatically expanding in popularity as promising alternatives to traditional organic solvents. NADES may be considered as designer solvents due to their numerous structural variations and possibility to design their physicochemical properties. Furthermore, NADES are based on compounds that are safe for human consumption which opens numerous possibilities for their applications in the field of life sciences. One of the applications of NADES is the extraction of biologically active compounds from plant material. A few studies in which NADES have been applied for the extraction of bioactive compounds showed that many compounds are dissolved better than in water or lipids. Independently of target compounds, to design efficient extraction methods by using NADES, following steps should be included: selection and fine-tuned NADES physicochemical characteristics; selection and optimization of extraction method and; recovery of target compounds from NADES if it is necessary. Herein, a brief overview of the up-to-date knowledge regarding these solvents, with special emphasis on extraction of phenolic compounds from grape pomace, will be presented.

Biography :

Ivana Radojcic Redovnikovic is a Professor at the Faculty of Food Technology and Biotechnology at University of Zagreb since 2017. She received her Diploma in Biotechnology in 2001 and her Doctoral degree in Biotechnology and Bioprocess engineering in 2007. The focus of her Doctoral dissertation was localization of aliphatic glucosinolate biosynthesis and their potential role in plant defense. Her scientific interests are: Plant Secondary Metabolites, Phytoremediation and Green Solvents (ionic liquids, deep eutectic solvents). She is a Lecturer for Bioprocess Engineering and Molecular Biotechnology Master degree programme; Biotechnology and Bioprocess Engineering for PhD programme and; Researcher in several national/international research projects, supervisor of undergraduate, graduate and PhD students. Currently, she is involved in projects concerning green solvents preparation and characterization (determination of their physicochemical properties and toxicological profile) and its application in extraction of phenolic compounds from food industry waste and biocatalysts with enzymes and microbes.