Extraction of phytochemicals from saffron by supercritical carbon dioxide with water and methanol as entrainer

Saffron (Crocus sativus L.) is a perennial herb that belongs to the family Iridaceae. Pigments obtained from saffron are widely used for dyeing and in coloring of food. They also have beneficial health effects. Being heat labile and highly reactive both enzymatically and chemically, the components in saffron such as picrocrocin, safranal, 4-hydroxy-2,6,6-trimethyl-4-hydroxy-1-carboxproducts (HTCC), crocin, and crocetin require mild extraction. In this study, we compared classical extraction with methanol and water and compared these results to supercritical CO₂ extraction performed with and without entrainer. The extracted components were analyzed using high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). Higher yields of functional components (picrocrocin, HTCC, safranal, α-crocin, deglycosylated crocin) were obtained using supercritical carbon dioxide extraction than by using conventional organic solvent. Yields of picrocrocin and safranal were highest when methanol was used as an entrainer. α-Crocin was optimally extracted at 80 °C and 30 MPa using water as an entrainer.