Abstract
The increase in healthy lifestyle has resulted in an increased demand of
both the avocado fruit and its oil production. The growth in demand has
prompted a need for an industry expansion and an efficient process that
produces high quality oil. This study therefore explored solid-liquid
oil extraction using hexane at different process parameters to determine
the optimum conditions which produce a higher yield of avocado oil.
Furthermore, the study analysed oil produced from different parameters
and evaluated its stability and fatty acid content. The oil stability
was evaluated by analyzing oxidative stability and peroxide value.
Observations at higher temperatures showed oil production of high
stability containing lower content of trans fats, which are undesired
and detrimental for human consumption. The efficient extraction
conditions found with the aid of response surface methodology (RSM)
optimization were found to be a solvent ratio of 1.53 ml/g at a
temperature of 60 ̵̊ C for 128 minutes. The overall aim of the study was
to improve the efficiency of the extraction process by increasing the
yield of oil without compromising quality. The oil production process
was found to be efficient such that the industry can be expanded to have
avocado cultivars dedicated to oil production using hexane.