Physical and Chemical Properties of oils of three varieties seeds of passion fruit: Passiflora alata Curtis, Passiflora edulis f. flavicarpa and Passiflora quadrangularis

Abstract

This paper reports the physicochemical characteristics of the seed oils from different varieties of passion fruit (Passiflora alata Curtis, Passiflora edulis f. flavicarpa and Passiflora quadrangularis) cultivated in Brazil, Roraima. The oil  from passion fruit, within the range of 19.29±0.02; 21.34±0.22 e 14.24±0.16%, respectively. The physicohemical characteristics of the extracted oils were: free fatty acid contents (0.84±0.01 - 2.73±0.05 % mg KOH g^-1 as oleic acid), iodine value (101.63±0.18 - 125.96±0.13 g of I₂ 100 g-1 of oil), and saponification index (90.56±0.32 - 179.06±0.19 mg KOH g-1 of oil). The oils revealed a reasonable oxidative parameter range as depicted by the determinations of index peroxide value (1.92±0.09 – 3.05±0.03 meqO₂ kg^-1 of oil). Linoleic acid was the major fatty acid found in all the seed oils with contributions of 55.75-63.42% of the total fatty acids (FA). Other fatty acids detected were known to be oleic acid (19.3-20.1%), palmitic acid (10.8-12.8%) and stearic acid (3.25-4.25%). Through the DPPH test we observed the presence of antioxidants in the three oil samples. The results of the present study indicate that the seeds of the tested passion fruit varieties from Roraima are a potential source of high-linoleic oil and thus can be explored for commercial use and value addition.