Bioresource Technology 64 (1998) 245-247
1998 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved
ELSEVIER
PII:S0960-8524(97)00163-6
Short Communication
Studies on Some Seeds and Seed Oils
Abstract
The chemical compositions of seeds and the physico-
chemical characteristics of the oils extracted from them
have been investigated for six varieties of mango
(Mangifera indica) seeds and for five other tropical
seeds. The oil contents of Mangifera indica seeds were
in the range 12"2-25"8/o, while those of the other
seeds were as high as 54"7% in Bridelia ferruginea.
Characterization of the oils of Mangifera indica varie-
ties showed that they were non-drying, except for
Petters-Ibadan which was semi-drying. Of the other
tropical seeds, Monodora myristica gave a drying oil,
Crysophilum abidum and Bridelia ferruginea gave
semi-drying oils, while Canarium schweinfurthii and
Khaya senegalensis gave non-drying oils. The
chemical compositions of the seeds suggest they may
be suitable as animal feeds. 1998 Elsevier Science
Ltd. All rights reserved
Key words: Physico-chemical characteristics of seed
oils, chemical composition of seeds.
INTRODUCTION
A number of tropical plants growing within the rain
forest and the semi-arid zones of Nigeria bear fruits,
some of which are edible, but with seeds which are
largely discarded. Recent studies have shown that
some of the seeds could find industrial application
as animal feeds, based on their nutritional values,
and as raw materials for paint formulation based on
the amounts and nature of the oils contained in
them (Eromosele & Eromosele, 1993; Eromosele et
al., 1994; Offem & Dart, 1989; Ajiwe et al., 1994;
Ukhun & Uwatse, 1988; Adesomoju, 1987; Nwadi-
nigwe, 1987; Dosumu & Ochu, 1995).
Recent studies (Nwadinigwe, 1987) showed that
Mangifera indica, linn has oil, although in low yield.
The studies, however, were not specific on the
variety of M. indica, although several varieties of the
fruit are known. The present communication is on
studies of the chemical compositions of six varieties
of M. indica seeds and five other tropical seeds and
245
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096(}-8524/98 $19./)(}
the physico-chemical characteristics of the oils
derived from the seeds.
METHODS
The oils were extracted from the seeds with a
soxhlet extractor using n-hexane, except for K.
senegalens& which was extracted with petroleum
ether (40-60C). The oils were characterised by
standard methods (Cocks & Van Rede, 1966; Basir,
1971) for oil and fat analysis. Proximate protein
contents of the seeds were determined by the
Kjeldahl digestion method (Cocks & Van Rede,
1966).
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
The physico-chemical characteristics of the oils from
six varieties of M. indica and from other seeds are
shown in Table 1. For M. indica, the oil from
Petters-Ibadan is semi-drying, judging from its
iodine value (IV) of 139-4 g/100 g. The oils of the
other varieties are non-drying and can be classified
as fats. From the peroxide values, the oils of M.
indica would be stable to oxidative degradation, but
the high acid values for some of the oils (Petters-
Ibadan, Hindi-Sinnar and Alphonse) suggest some in
vivo hydrolytic activities in the oil seeds.
The IVs of the oils suggest that M. myristica is a
drying oil; C. abidum and B. ferruginea are semi-
drying oils while C. schweinfurthii and K. senegalens&
are non-drying oils. The latter two oils would be
prone to peroxide formation, based on their
peroxide values, but may be suitable for soap
production judging from the high saponification
values.
The chemical compositions of the seeds of M.
indica and other seeds are shown in Table 2. The oil
contents of the seeds of M. indica are as high as
25"8% in Hindi-Sinnar and are comparable to the
ones for some commercial vegetable oils, e.g.
soyabean (11-25); cotton seed (18-28), rubber seed
(21-25) (Ajiwe et al., 1994). The protein contents
are low, not higher than 5.4%, but could be signifi-
246 Short communication

Table 1. Some physico-chemical characteristics of the oils from varieties of Mangifera indica and other seeds

Variety/species Iodine value Peroxide value Saponification value Acid value % FFA Class of oil
(g/100 g) (mEg/kg) (mg KOH) (mg KOH/g) (as oleic acid)

Mangifera indica
Petters-Ibadan 139.4 0.0 - 20.4 10.2 Semi-drying
Hindi-Sinnar 47.0 0-0 102.7 21.6 10.8 Non-drying
Petters Kazaure 21.6 0-0 41.0 55.7 27.8 Non-drying
Alphonse 41.9 0.0 164-4 5.6 2.8 Non-drying
Binta-Sugar 40.6 0.0 257-8 4-6 2.3 Non-drying
Dabsha 49.5 0"0 157.4 2-2 1.1 Non-drying
Monodora myristica 177-5 6.5 74.3 16.3 8.1 Drying
Crysophilum abidum 157-5 0"0 44.9 26.9 13.5 Semi-drying
Bridelia ferruginea 149-9 0.0 32.3 23.4 11.7 Semi-drying
Canarium schweinfurthii 87-0 40.0 213.0 0.3 0.2 Non-drying
Khaya senegalensisa 68.0 26.0 186.0 - - Non-drying

Extractant: n-hexane except for: aPet. ether (40-60C).

Table 2. Chemical composition of varieties of Mangifera indica and other seeds

Variety/species Oil content (%) Protein (%) Moisture (%) Carbohydrate (%)

Mangifera indica
Petters-Ibadan 14.0 2-9 54.5 28.6
Hindi-Sinnar 25.8 3.0 49.9 21.3
Petters Kazaure 12.2 3.9 40.9 43-0
Alphonse 21-7 4-3 35.3 38.7
Binta-Sugar 22.1 5-4 48.3 24.2
Dabsha 16.1 4.0 40.5 39.4
Monodora myristica 52"0 14.6 12-1 21"3
Crysophilum abidum 2.9 10.8 4.4 81.9
Bridelia ferruginea 54-7 - 5"1 -
Khaya senegalensis 52-5 - - -

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find application for industrial finishes and paints.
The oils of the other varieties of M. indica are fats
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247
I. C. Eromosele*, C. O. Eromosele,
P. Innazo & P. Njerim
Department of Chemistry, Federal University of Technology,
PM.B. 2076, Yola, Adamawa State, Nigeria
(Received 29 May 1997; revised version received
21 October 1997; accepted 22 October 1997)
*Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.