Utilizing Nano-Adsorbents and Electrostatic Field Treatment for Sustainable Refinement of Crude Canola Oil

Li Zhou; Timothy J Tse; Farley Chicilo; Jianheng Shen; Venkatesh Meda; Martin J T Reaney

doi:10.3390/foods13172707

Utilizing Nano-Adsorbents and Electrostatic Field Treatment for Sustainable Refinement of Crude Canola Oil

Foods. 2024 Aug 27;13(17):2707. doi: 10.3390/foods13172707.

Authors

Li Zhou¹, Timothy J Tse², Farley Chicilo², Jianheng Shen², Venkatesh Meda³, Martin J T Reaney^{2

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Affiliations

¹ Key Laboratory of Edible Oil Quality and Safety, State Administration for Market Regulation, School of Food Science and Engineering, Wuhan Polytechnic University, Wuhan 430023, China.
² Department of Food and Bioproduct Sciences, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, SK S7N 5A8, Canada.
³ Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, SK S7N 5A9, Canada.
⁴ Prairie Tide Diversified Inc., Saskatoon, SK S7J 0R1, Canada.
⁵ Guangdong Saskatchewan Oilseed Joint Laboratory, Department of Food Science and Engineering, Jinan University, Guangzhou 510632, China.

Abstract

Removal of polar impurities, such as phospholipids, free fatty acids (FFA), and peroxides, can be challenging during the refining of crude canola oil. Current conventional refining methods are energy-intensive (e.g., hot water washes) and can generate significant waste (e.g., wastewater effluent) and neutral oil loss. This study investigated the joint use of nano-adsorbents and electrostatic field (E-field) treatment as a potential and sustainable alternative in removing these impurities during the oil refining process. Specifically, aluminum oxide (Al₂O₃) nanoparticles were employed to neutralize FFAs, achieving a 62.4% reduction in acid value while preserving the fatty acid profile of the oil. After refining, E-field treatment was successful in removing the spent nano-adsorbent from solution (up to 72.3% by weight), demonstrating enhanced efficiency compared to conventional methods (e.g., gravitational settling, filtration, and centrifugation). The neutral oil loss using Al₂O₃ nano-adsorbents was also comparable to conventional refining methods, with a 4.38% (by weight) loss. After E-field treatment, the Al₂O₃ nano-adsorbent was then calcined to assess reusability. The Al₂O₃ nano-adsorbent was effectively recycled for three refining cycles. the methods do not use of large amounts of water and generate minimal waste byproducts (e.g., effluent). Nonetheless, while the nano-adsorbents demonstrated promising results in FFA removal, they were less effective in eliminating peroxides and pigments. E-field techniques were also effective in removing spent nano-adsorbent; although, optimization of E-field parameters could further improve its binding capacity. Finally, future studies could potentially focus on the physicochemical modifications of the nano-adsorbent material to enhance their refining capacity and reusability. Overall, this study presents a sustainable alternative or addition to conventional refining methods and lays the groundwork for future research.

Keywords: canola oil; electrostatic field; nano-adsorbent; neutral oil loss; separation.

Abstract

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