INTEGRATED SUPERCRITICAL CO2 EXTRACTION AND FRACTIONATION OF PASSION FRUIT (Passiflora edulis Sims) BY-PRODUCTS

Abstract Phytochemicals extracted from natural sources are widely studied for many applications, including the prevention of diseases and functional foods. In this context, passion fruit by-products (PFBP) can play an important role in obtaining these compounds. This work aimed to concentrate PFBP extracts from supercritical fluid extraction (SFE) (fixed at 40 °C and 35 MPa) in δ-tocotrienol, β/γ-tocotrienol, squalene, and carotenoids using a homemade fractionation system with two separator vessels. Integrated extraction and fractionation (SFE-SFF) were performed at 17-25 MPa and 50-80 °C. An economic evaluation simulated a pilot-scale process, resulting in a cost of US$ 277-384/kg extract for the most concentrated fraction (F2). Two SFE-SFF conditions were able to concentrate squalene in about 5.2 times in the last fraction of the process (F3). In contrast, the proposed integrated process did not seem promising to concentrate carotenoids, thus other fractionation methods should be investigated.