万寿菊中叶黄素酯的提取及皂化工艺研究

Lutein can be used to improve the human immune system and prevent cataract and senile macula lutea degeneration. It can be obtained by the saponification of lutein ester, which is the major extracts from Marigold. Lutein is widely used in food, food additive, drugs, and feed industries. In this paper, the extraction of lutein ester from the marigold is conducted with n-hexane as extractant. The best condition for saponifying lutein ester was chosen by the orthogonal experiments of L₉(3⁴).
It is found that using 20% KOH methanol as the extracting solution, with a saponification reaction time of 40 minutes, at a temperature of 50 ℃, Lutein ester can be thoroughly saponified. Lutein can then be recrystallized in the solvent of acetone and methanol (v: v= 1: 1). The purity of lutein crystal is 97.2%.