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ARS Home » Northeast Area » Beltsville, Maryland (BHNRC) » Beltsville Human Nutrition Research Center » Food Composition and Methods Development Laboratory » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #318812
Title: Extraction and characterization of montmorency (Prunus cerasus L.) sour cherry pit oil

Author
item KORLESKY, NATHAN - University Of Minnesota
item STOLP, LUCAS - University Of Minnesota
item KODALI, DHARMA - University Of Minnesota
item Byrdwell, W Craig

Submitted to: Journal of the American Oil Chemists' Society
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 4/15/2016
Publication Date: 4/20/2016
Citation: Korlesky, N.M., Stolp, L.J., Kodali, D.R., Byrdwell, W.C. 2016. Extraction and characterization of montmorency (Prunus cerasus L.) sour cherry pit oil. Journal of the American Oil Chemists' Society. doi: 10.1007/5.11746.016.28354.

Interpretive Summary: Montmorency sour cherry (Prunus cerasus L.) pit oil was extracted and characterized by various analytical methods. Recent statistics report sour cherry production at 293.7 million pounds in the United States for 2013, resulting in pit by-product amounts of 35-44 million pounds. The pits, however, currently have few value-added uses with the majority being disposed of in landfills. Given the large amount of cherry fruit produced for food consumption, finding value-added applications for this undervalued, abundantly available pit byproduct, is an economic necessity. Like other tree nut oils, the oil from cherry pits can become a value added product if its composition and properties are fully understood. However, the oil composition including the specific TAGs, minor components, and the oil properties have not been fully investigated. In the present study we report a comprehensive evaluation of the cherry pit oil, with extensive analysis of the oil’s fatty acid and triacylglycerol compositions, along with other minor components such as tocopherols and sterols. The oil’s physical and functional properties were also evaluated in order to find value added applications for this undervalued resource.

Technical Abstract: Montmorency sour cherry (Prunus cerasus L.) pit oil was extracted and characterized by various methods including: gas chromatography (GC), liquid chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry (LC-MS), nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and x-ray diffraction (XRD). The oil gave an acid value of 1.45, saponification value of 193 and unsaponifiable matter content of 0.72%. The fatty acid distribution revealed oleic and linoleic acids as the major components with small concentrations of saturated fatty acids as well as a-eleostearic acid (9Z,11E,13E-octadecatrienoic acid). The triacyglycerol (TAG) composition showed triolein (OOO) being the major constituent followed by dioleoyl linoleoyl glycerol (OLO), plus a number of other minor TAGs. DSC and XRD confirmed the presence of a, ß’ and ß polymorphic crystal forms. The oxidative induction time (OIT) of CPO was 30.3 minutes at 130°C. The oil showed good thermal stability with a thermal decomposition temperature of 352°C.