Abstract

The virgin oil extraction from avocado Hass was carried using an Abencor pilot scale plant.

High-power ultrasound (1.73 MHz) was applied after mixing. High-frequency ultrasound device consists of two transductors which each deliver 30 W/L.

Different proportions of water were added before ultrasound treatment (no water added and paste:water relation (1:3, 1:2, 1:1, 2:1, 3:1) and also different ultrasound application times (0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 10, 15, 20 and 25 minutes). The study was carried out by setting one of the two variables considered and changing the values of the other. In the water addition study, ultrasound time was set at 15 min.

It was found that oil recovery increased with the percentage of water added. It was decided to employ a ratio of 1:1 to study the influence of ultrasound application time. Under these conditions, it was found that with 1 minute of ultrasound application, recovery increased by 40 % over the process without ultrasound.

It was observed that the composition in fatty acids and the content of natural antioxidants (tocopherols and polyphenols) are not affected by the ultrasound application.

It is concluded that the application of high-frequency ultrasound with addition of water post malaxing improves recovery of virgin avocado oil without negative effects on the general quality of the oil.

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