Vacuum pyrolysis of chia flour residues: An alternative way to obtain omega-3/omega-6 fatty acids and calcium-enriched biochars

DE PAOLI, JUAN M.

JOURNAL OF ANALYTICAL AND APPLIED PYROLYSIS

ELSEVIER SCIENCE BV

Año: 2022 vol. 161

0165-2370

he consumption of chia (Salvia hisp´anica L.) seeds products has increased recently and it has been suggested thatthe inclusion of this functional food in a daily human diet could contribute to improving consumers? health. Thepresent study focuses on the extraction of omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids from chia flour residues using thevacuum pyrolysis (VP) technique as an alternative free-solvent extraction method. The pyrolysis conditions andtheir effects on the quality of the bio-oil containing the fatty acids were evaluated. VP experiments were carriedout in a nitrogen atmosphere between 300 and 700 ◦C under vacuum for 20 min. The best results were achievedat 400 ◦C, where the oil fraction (38% yield) was enriched in high proportions of omega-3 and omega-6 fattyacids. 1H NMR analysis of the oil indicated 67.5% of α-linolenic acid and 18% of linoleic acid in the bio-oil,which are recovery values similar to those found in the literature. Moreover, extraction of fatty a