Near-critical carbon dioxide extraction of khoa (Satureja boliviana Benth Briq) using ethanol as a co-solvent: Experiment and modeling

In this work the volatile oil from khoa was extracted using pressurized CO2 with and without ethanol as co-solvent. Kinetic experiments were performed at pressures of 6.5 and 7 MPa and temperatures of 294.15 K. The composition of the volatile oil was determined using gas chromatography. The volatile oil was formed predominantly by cymene, 1–8 cineole, isomenthone, pulegone, thymol and caryophyllene. Consequently, we present a mathematical modeling study of the extraction of essential oil from khoa. The overall extraction curves (OECs) obtained for khoa oil were modeled considering the mass transfer based on local equilibrium between solvent and a solid. The influence of pressure and co-solvent on the extraction kinetics was evaluated using a mathematical modeling. The model was solved numerically and validated with experimental data. A novel method for calculating the initial mass fraction of khoa-extract is proposed; data of the proposed model are in excellent agreement with the experimental data. Furthermore, the influence of fluid flow rate and particle size has been studied on the extraction efficiency. Finally, a methodology has been established to estimate extraction yield curves in large scale using the data obtained in small-scale experiments.