Thesis Abstract

Abstract
White mucuna pruriens var. utilis seeds are known for their high nutritional value and potential health benefits. In this study, the extraction and characterization of seed oil from white mucuna pruriens var. utilis were investigated. The oil extraction process was carried out using a Soxhlet extractor with hexane as the solvent. The extracted oil was then subjected to various physicochemical analyses to evaluate its quality. The physicochemical characterization of the white mucuna pruriens var. utilis seed oil included the determination of its moisture content, acid value, peroxide value, iodine value, saponification value, and fatty acid profile. The moisture content of the oil was found to be within acceptable limits, indicating proper extraction and storage conditions. The acid value, which reflects the free fatty acid content, was determined to assess the oil's quality and stability. The peroxide value, a measure of primary oxidation products, was used to evaluate the oil's oxidative rancidity. The iodine value of the white mucuna pruriens var. utilis seed oil was determined to assess its unsaturation level and potential applications. The saponification value, which indicates the average molecular weight of the fatty acids present in the oil, was also determined. Additionally, the fatty acid profile of the extracted oil was analyzed using gas chromatography to identify and quantify the individual fatty acids present, such as oleic acid, linoleic acid, and palmitic acid. The results of the physicochemical analyses indicated that the white mucuna pruriens var. utilis seed oil is a rich source of unsaturated fatty acids, with oleic acid and linoleic acid being the predominant fatty acids. The oil exhibited low acidity and peroxide values, suggesting good quality and stability. The iodine value indicated a moderate degree of unsaturation, making the oil suitable for various applications in the food and pharmaceutical industries. In conclusion, the extraction and characterization of white mucuna pruriens var. utilis seed oil demonstrated its potential as a valuable source of healthy fats with important nutritional properties. Further studies could explore its potential applications in food products, dietary supplements, and pharmaceutical formulations, benefiting from its favorable fatty acid profile and stability characteristics.

Thesis Overview

1.0   PREAMBLE

1.1   INTRODUCTION

In our world today, the geometric increase of the population has raised alarming concerns on the food security to sustain the teeming population (Sridhar, 2007). The worse hit is developing countries in Africa, especially Nigeria that still lacks the capacity to manage food production tasks arising from the current global warming and other environmental changes. The few food products usually lack adequate proteins, essential fatty acids and vitamins leading to the common form of malnutrition in individuals.

Interestingly, unconventional legumes are promising in terms of nutrition, provisions of food security, agricultural development and in crop rotation in developing countries (Sridhar, 2007). The wild legume varieties have different quantities of protein, carbohydrates, fiber, lipid/fatty acids and minerals.

Mucuna pruriens var.utilis is a tropical legume of the family Fabaceae and genus Mucuna. Some of its common names are Agbara (Igbo), Yerepe (Yoruba), Mauritius bean, cow itch, cow hage, Jackbohne (German). Velvet bean is an annual perennial, herbaceous, vigorous climbing vine that growso 3-18cm in height. It is indigenous of the tropical regions especially Africa, India and the West Indies. Its pods are sigmoid, turgid, longitudinally ribbed and always clustered on the stem and the pods are covered with reddish-orange hairs that dislodge readily causing intense irritation on the skin. The pods contain seeds that are black or white (Siddhuraju, 2000; Leslie, 2005; Sridhar, 2007).

The oil contents of Mucuna seed may be edible and consist of different fatty acid which is a characteristic identify of most oil seeds. The chemical composition of an oil extract gives a qualitative identification of such oil in selection of areas while it can be applied or utilized despite differences in processing and extraction of the oil (Ofoegbu, – 2006).

The aim of this work thus is to extract the oil from the white seeds of Mucuna pruriens var. utilis, characterize it and determine the applicability, based on the quantities, in industries such beverage, pharmaceutical and/or soap manufacturing.

This work was inspired by the need to find alternative sources of good oils for human utilization in industries.

This work is intended:

(1)     To determine the percentage of oil content of white seeds of Mucuna pruriens var.utilis

(2)     To determine the moisture contents of the seeds used

(3)     To characterize, by obtaining the physicochemical properties of the oil

(4)     To suggest possible industry the oil can be utilized based on the results and the information provided in literature on oils.