However, water also facilitates interference between carbohydrates and other water-soluble substances such as certain polysaccharides and proteins [14]. Thus, most of the conventional
extraction methods for oligosaccharides often use high concentrations of alcohol [15].
The use of ultrasound assisted extraction (UAE) instead of traditional extraction has been increasing and its use has been investigated in the pharmaceutical, chemical and food industries. UAE became a good alternative extraction method when compared to classical extraction methods because of its high efficiency, low energy requirement and low water consumption (no reflux or refrigeration are needed) [16]. The improvement of the extraction
process caused by ultrasound is attributed to the disruption of the cell wall, reduction of the particle size and the enhancement of the mass transfer of the cell content to the solvent caused by the collapse of the bubbles produced by cavitation [17]. Therefore, UAE provides increased extraction yield, increased rate of extraction, reduced extraction time and higher processing throughput along with the advantage of usage of reduced temperature and solvent volume which is very advantageous for the extraction of heat labile compounds [18]. The application of UAE in food processing technology is of interest for enhancing extraction of components from
plant and animal materials such as phenolic compounds, anthocyanins,aromatic compounds, polysaccharides, oils and functional