Microwave Assisted Three Phase Extraction of Andrographolide from Andrographis paniculata

Present work reports a novel technique for the separation of andrographolide from Andrographis paniculata, where three phase partitioning (TPP) was hyphenated with microwave extraction technique. Microwave irradiation when combined with TPP is called microwave assisted three phase partitioning (MTPP). Microwave is known to enhance the mass transfer of the reaction, thus overcoming the disadvantage of mass transfer resistance associated with conventional TPP. Quantification of andrographolide was done using HPLC. Soxhlet extraction was used as the standard for comparison, which yielded 42.25 mg/g of andrographolide in 240 min. While 38.53 mg/g yield of AP was obtained with optimized parameters as 6 min microwave irradiation time, 40 % salt concentration, 1:1 slurry to t-butanol ratio, 272 W power input, 50 % duty cycle, 1:20 solute to solvent ratio. MTPP was found to be superior over three phase partitioning and ultrasound assisted three phase partitioning with respect to yield, time and solvent consumption.