Study on the Extraction Process of Capsaicin from Dry Red Capsicum

To optimize the extraction process of capsaicin from dry red capsicum,the effects of extraction solvent,solid-liquid ratio,granularity of the capsicum peel,extraction time and times on the extraction rate and purity of capsaicin were studied.The results showed that the optimum granularity of the capsicum peel was between 0.425mm and 0.850mm;the optimum extractant was the mixture of ethanol and petroleum ether,and the ethanol volume concentration was 20%;the optimum solid-liquid ratio was 1∶3 with 1∶2 for the first time,1∶1 for the second time;the extraction time was 3h.Under this condition,the extraction ratio of capsaicin was 98.9%,and the capsaicin purity was 9.92%,which was as much as 10 times of capsaicin purity using the ethanol as extractant usually and was beneficial to the further purification of capsaicin from the extract mixture.