Advanced Technologies for Vegetable Oil Extraction

Dear Colleagues,

Vegetable oils present a valuable class of bioresources, with applications in both food and non-food industries and a production rate that has been steadily increasing in the last twenty years. Their extraction from oilseeds is a key process, as it exerts a strong impact on the resulting oil characteristics and quality.

In view of the recent pressure towards sustainability, oilseed processing industries are demanding novel oil extraction processes that could be both efficient and more environmentally friendly. Firstly, the use of innovative pre-treatment techniques for the seeds can be a way to promote better extraction of vegetable oils. Secondly, a renewed interest in thermomechanical pressing is currently observed, particularly through the use of twin-screw extruders rather than conventional single-screw presses. Lastly, the use of less hazardous and environmentally harmful extracting solvents, in contrast to the current use of hexane or cyclohexane, is also of great interest at present.

This Special Issue on “Advanced Technologies for Vegetable Oil Extraction” aims to present novel advances in the development of innovative technologies for the extraction of vegetable oil from various seeds. Topics include, but are not limited to:

• Seed pre-treatments (using microwave technology, drying, extrusion, steam treatment, mechanical treatments, irradiation, etc.);
• Innovative technologies for (chemo-)mechanical pressing (twin-screw extrusion, etc.), process development and characterisation, and their optimization and scale-up;
• Green solvent-assisted extraction (supercritical and subcritical fluids like CO₂, renewable solvents like bioethanol, etc.);
• (Enzyme-assisted) aqueous extraction;
• Valorisation of process waste and by-products (e.g., press cake) through thermopressing and/or injection-molding to produce biomaterials, composite manufacturing, etc;

Alternate vegetable-oil-refining techniques and suggestions of original applications for cakes are not mandatory for this Special Issue. Nevertheless, they will also be appreciated.

Dr. Philippe Evon
Dr. Evelien Uitterhaegen
Guest Editors

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