Polyphenols of pomegranate peels have been extracted mostly
by methanol and/or combinations of methanol and other organic
solvents by classical extraction techniques. Water is not an effective
solvent for the extraction of polyphenols in pomegranate peels
compared to methanol at normal atmospheric pressure conditions.
Pressurised water extraction (PWE) is a technique that uses water
as extractant at elevated pressure. PWE was used for extraction of
thermally labile components, including terpene trilactones from
Ginkgo biloba leaves (Lang & Wai, 2003) and naphtodianthrones
from Hypericum perforatum (Manila & Wai, 2003).
The aim of this study was to investigate the suitability of
PWE for extraction of polyphenols in pomegranate peels and
subsequent use of the extracts as natural anti-oxidant. Effective extraction parameters upon PWE were determined and ineffective
ones were eliminated by a univariate statistical approach.