Samenvatting

This research paper addresses the research aim of determining the most effective and sustainable method for mango butter extraction using a Soxhlet extraction method. The project focuses on meeting the goals of the start-up “Natural Waste”, and utilizing discarded mango seeds from a Dutch juice processing company.

The Netherlands is a major mango fruit consumer and large quantities of mango waste is being produced as a result of that, such as peels, seeds, and flesh. This project explores the potential of mango waste utilization and production of mango kernel butter for application in the cosmetics industry. Further, the goal of the project is to estimate the yield of mango butter that is possible to be achieved from the mango waste and create a viable and environmentally friendly production process.

It was concluded that the use of a thimble as a filter for the Soxhlet proved superior to cotton-wool filter. During the experiments Soxhlet extractions with n-hexane were done, testing Kent variety mango kernels (fresh and boiled version), Alphonso, and Kesar varieties were also tested. Alphonso and Kesar showed a similar butter yield of 8% out of 20g of dried kernels, in comparison to Kent where the average percentage was 6%. Moreover, longer extraction time of 6h resulted in higher butter yield than 4h of extraction. The maximum amount that was obtained was 1.65g of mango kernel oil, 8.18% out of 20g fresh mango kernel powder extracted in 4 hours, which might be due to higher solvent concentrations in the product. The higher iodine number of Kent mango butter indicated higher unsaturated fatty acids than the Alphonso type, making it more susceptible to oxidation and faster degradation.

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