Bioresource Technology 53 (1995) 89-90
1995 Elsevier Science Limited
0960-8524(9S)00049-6
ELSEVIER
Short Communication
Extraction and Utilization of Afzelia
africana Seed Oil
Abstract
Afzelia africana seed oil was extracted by soxhlet. The
percentage yield of the oil was calculated as
25.80+2.0. The saponification value, iodine value,
acid value, free fatty acid, specific gravity and m e a n
molecular mass were determined to assess the quality
of the oil. The iodine value showed that the oil is a
semi-drying oil; while the saponification value, acid
value, free fatty acid and specific gravity proved that
the oil has low acidity, needs little purification and has
a long shelf-life. The mean molecular mass suggested
that it is not highly unsaturated. The iodine value fur-
ther suggests that the oil is similar to dehydrated castor
oil. The oil was found to be useful for the formulation
of alkyd resin and shoe polish.
Key words: Afzelia seed oil, extraction, characteriza-
tion, utilization.
INTRODUCTION
Afzelia africana is known in many localities within
Nigeria and other countries, such as Senegal,
Ghana, Sierra Leone, Togo and the Ivory Coast.
There are two main species of Afzelia. They are
Afzelia bela and Afzelia bracteata. The edible one is
Afzelia africana. Afzelia africana is in the family of
Caesal Pinaceae. Afzelia africana is a tropical tree
and thrives well. It grows to an average height of 2.5
m. The fruits are very hard, nearly black with a red
cap. They burst when dry to discharge the seeds.
The seeds are used for soup-thickening in Nigeria,
while the Bantu tribe of Nigeria and Ghana use the
infusion of the seed in pottery (Keay et al., 1964).
There has been no report about the oils from Af'zelia
africana. This report therefore deals with the extrac-
tion, characterization and utilization of the Afzelia
africana seed oil. This work is an extension of the
work done by Ajiwe et al. (1994) on cassava seed oil.
*Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
89
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METHODS
Afzel/a seed samples
The Afzelia seeds were bought from Awka Market,
Anambra State, Nigeria. These were dried in the
oven at 105 for 1 h. The black seed-coat was then
removed.
Oil extraction
The shelled seeds were crushed and oil was extrac-
ted using petroleum ether (60-80) in a soxhlet and
the solvent was distilled-off at 8&C. The oil content
was derived from the weight of the oil and the
weight of the crushed seeds.
Removal of free fatty acids and degumming
Free fatty acids (FFA) and non-fatty materials or
gum were removed from the crude seed-oil by the
AOCS official method (1960).
Physico-chemical properties
The iodine value, saponification value (SV) and acid
value of the oil were determined by standard proce-
dures (Lambert & Muir, 1968). The FFA was
calculated from the relationship given by Norris
(1965). One unit of acid value = 0.503% FFA (calcu-
lated as oleic acid). The specific gravity was
determined by the method of Williams (1966), while
the mean molecular mass was estimated from the
relation 56/SV x 1000.
Production of alkyd resin
An alkyd resin was made by an alcoholysis method.
Afzelia oil (23-08%), glycerol (33.85%) and phthalic
anhydride (43.07%) were fed into a three-necked
flask. This was connected to a carbon dioxide gas
inlet, water-cooled condenser and an inlet for a stir-
rer. The flask was heated with continuous stirring at
240 +5C until alkyd resin formed (Boxal & Fraun-
hofer, 1980).
Similarly, alkyd resin was formed by heating the
oil above 250C in air.
Formulation of paint
Af-zelia africana alkyd resin (34.10%), mineral oil
(22.20%), anti-oxidant (0.20%) red oxide plus cal-
cium oxide (22-23%) and lead naphthenate with
90 Short communication
Table 1. Characterization ofAfze//a africana seed oil
Parameter Value
Oil content (% of dry seeds) 25.80 __+2.00
Saponification value (rag/g) 17.74___1.25
Iodine value (g/100 g) 104.46__+2-22
Acid value (mg/g) 1-96+0.11
Free fatty acid (mg/g) 0.98 + 0.06
Specific gravity at room temp. (28C) 0-92
Mean molecular mass 3162-35
cobalt naphthenate (1.24%) were all mixed in a con-
tainer and stirred continuously with the addition of
turpentine as the solvent (20.00%) (Chukwumobi,
1987).
Formulation of shoe polish
Paraffin wax (20.83%) and beeswax (6.94%) were
melted on a hot plate. Afzelia oil (13.69%) was
added with stirring. To this mixture, carbon black
(2.78%) and turpentine (41-67%) were added. The
liquid was transferred to a container, where it solidi-
fied after cooling.
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
The Afzelia oil obtained after extraction was light
yellow in colour. It did not solidify at room tem-
perature. The percentage oil content and the
physico-chemical properties are shown in Table 1.
The percentage oil content is quite high when
compared to other oil seeds, such as soya bean
(16-25), cotton seed (18-28) and rubber seed
(21-25) (Norris, 1965). This suggests that the pro-
cessing of the oil from the seed should be quite
economical and solvent extraction is recommended
as the best extraction method. The oil had a low
saponification value but a high iodine value. The low
saponification value showed that the oil is a good
edible oil. This may be the reason why it is accept-
able as a soup thickener (Keay et al., 1964). The low
saponification value is directly related to the mean
molecular mass. The iodine value of the oil places it
within the range of dehydrated castor-bean oil and it
may be grouped as a semi-drying oil (Norris, 1965).
This value also places the oil as highly unsaturated
and as an oleic-linoleic-acid oil (Norris, 1965). The
low acid value and free fatty acid value of the oil
also showed the oil to be an oil with a long shelf-life,
which should not need much purification.
The property of unsaturation suggested the use of
the Afzelia africana seed oil for the formulation of
alkyd resin. The oil yielded a good resin on heating
above 250C. The resin was used as part of the
formulation of paint. The oil itself could also be
used for other purposes, such as a constituent of
shoe polish. The paint and polish produced were
good when compared to market ones.
REFERENCES
Ajiwe, V. I. E., Umerie, S. C., Okeke, C. A. & Oburota,
V. N. (1994). Biores. Technol., 47, 85-6.
A.O.C.S. Official Methods (1960). Sampling and Analysis
of Commercial Fats and Oils. A.O.C.S., Washington, pp.
801-55.
Boxall, J. & Van Fraunhofer, J. A. (1980). Pain Formula-
tion, 1st edn. New York, pp. 4-6.
Chukwumobi, L. U. (1987). Paint Making. A Report of
Industrial Training Work at Phina Paints Industries. Dept.
of Science Technology, Nnamdi Azikiwe University,
Nigeria.
Keay, R. W. J., Onochie, C. F. A. & Stanfield, D. P.
(1964). Trees of Nigeria. Clarendon Press, Oxford, pp.
204-5, 214-8, 300-2.
Lambert, J. & Muir, J. A. (1968). Practical Chemistry, 2nd
edn. Heinemann Education Books, London, pp. 315-8.
Norris, F. A. (1965). Fats and fatty acids. In Kirk-Othmer
Encyclopaedia of Chemical Technology, Vol. 8, 2nd edn.
John Wiley, New York, pp. 770-811.
Williams, K. A. (1966). Oils, Fats and Fatty Foods, 4th edn.
Elsevier, New York, pp. 88-122.
V. I. E. Ajiwe,* C. A. Okeke &
H. U. Agbo
Nnamdi Azikiwe University, P.M.B. 5025, Awka,
Nigeria
(Received 20 October 1994, revised version received
25 February 1995; accepted 19 March 1995)