Hydrothermal–Microwave Processing for Starch Extraction from Mexican Avocado Seeds: Operational Conditions and Characterization

Abstract

<jats:p>Avocado seeds are an agroindustrial residue widely produced in Mexico that are causing various environmental problems due to their accumulation. The evaluation of avocado residues to recover biopolymers by microwave-assisted extraction (MAE) and the characterization of avocado starch properties were studied in the present work. A central-composite design was used to optimize the MAE process. Moreover, a comparison was performed between MAE non-isothermal mode (NO–ISO) and conventional extraction. Starch optimization by MAE was obtained at 161.09 °C for 56.23 min with an extraction yield of 49.52% ± 0.69%, while with NO–ISO at 161 °C was obtained 45.75% ± 2.18%. Conventional extraction was 39.04% ± 2.22%. Compared with conventional starch, MAE starch showed similar proprieties and molecular spectra. In contrast, MAE starch showed high solubility, low water absorption capacity, a non-granular structure with small particle size (&lt;2 µm) and polydispersity of fragments at different sizes of polymers. Therefore, MAE is a viable technology to extract the starch, and avocado seed can be considered an excellent starch source for the development of novel functional foods, contributing to promoting sustainability across the food chain.</jats:p>

Effect of Continuous and Discontinuous Microwave-Assisted Heating on Starch-Derived Dietary Fiber Production

“…This might be due to the hydrolysis reaction during pyroconversion [ 8 , 13 , 30 ]. The high solubility of dextrins obtained from starch using microwave heating can ensure good homogenization of dextrins in the aqueous environment of food products [ 31 ].…”

Persea Americana Agro-Industrial Waste Biorefinery for Sustainable High-Value-Added Products

“…The obtained biopolymer exhibited high solubility, low water absorption capacity, a non-granular structure with particles smaller than 2 µm, and polydispersity at different sizes. Therefore, starch extraction resulted in being suitable and feasible by MAE technology when using avocado seed [131].…”

Advantages and Disadvantages of Bioplastics Production from Starch and Lignocellulosic Components

“…Hydrothermal processing with microwave-assisted extraction can optimize the process, since it is considered a green and safe technology for starch extraction, due to its ease of use, the possibility of using only water as extraction solvent, short extraction times, higher performance, and lower solvent consumption [ 208 , 209 ]. Therefore, it has been applied on an industrial scale for the obtaining of bioactive compounds [ 210 ].…”