Citrus Seeds as Potential Vegetable Oil Resources: Oil Content and Some Quality Characteristics of Oil

Authors : Murat Mutlucan, Sercan Önder

Pages : 602-609

Doi:10.19113/sdufenbed.1712467

View : 51 | Download : 295

Publication Date : 2025-12-25

Article Type : Research Paper

Abstract :Evaluating citrus seeds, classified as agricultural and industrial waste, as a novel potential byproduct may offer a new strategy to mitigate the strain on vegetable oil supply. The present study aimed to identify potential use of citrus seed oil by analyzing the oil and fatty acid content, lipid nutrient quality of 7 citrus oil (bitter orange, kumquat, lemon, limequat, mandarin orange, pomelo and sweet orange) grown in Türkiye. The results indicate that citrus seeds include significant oil concentrations, with an oil content ranging from 26.622% (limequat) to 36.100% (bitter orange). A total of thirteen fatty acid components were identified from seed oils obtained by n-hexane extraction. The major fatty acids were palmitic acid (23.235-37.074%), oleic acid (19.895-30.207%), and linoleic acid (29.359-38.006%). It was determined that myristic acid was not synthesized in kumquat, pentadecanoic acid in kumquat and limequat, and alpha-linolenic acid in kumquat, lemon and limequat seeds. The saturated fatty acids (SFA) in citrus seed oil ranged from 27.951% (kumquat) to 41.976% (sweet orange), whereas the unsaturated fatty acids ranged from 58.023% (sweet orange) to 72.050% (kumquat). The quality of citrus seed oils was assessed by calculating nutrition quality indices for lipids, including PUFA/SFA ratio, atherogenicity index, thrombogenicity index, peroxidation index, unsaturation index, and calculated oxidability. Computed nutritional quality indexes revealed significant differences among species. Hierarchical cluster analysis was used to examine the classification and correlation of the oil composition in citrus seeds, revealing that the results indicated that seed oil composition largely depended on the species and could be classified into three groups accordingly. The results of the study suggest that citrus seeds could be used as healthy renewable oils for the creation of value-added products, due to their notable fatty acid composition and lipid nutritional quality.
Keywords : Biyolojik atıklar, Yağ asitleri, Besin indeksleri, Yağlı tohumlar, Yağ kalitesi

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