Extraction of ferulic acid from Angelica sinensis with supercritical CO2

Extraction of pharmacologically active ingredient of ferulic acid from the root of Angelica sinensis with supercritical CO2 was investigated. The experimental results show that the extract yields were 0.87-4.06% at temperatures from 45 to 65 degrees C and pressures from 30 to 50 MPa, and the maximum content of ferulic aicd in the extracts was about 0.35-0.37%, which is lower than that of 0.61-0.85% by conventional percolation methods. Ethanol was used as co-solvent in different ratios to raw materials in order to increase the content of ferulic acid in the extracts. The experimental results show that both the extract yields and the content of ferulic acid in the extracts increase greatly compared with pure CO2 extraction. When the ratio of ethanol to the raw material was 1.6, the content of ferulic acid in the extracts was 0.91-1.27%, indicating that supercritical fluid extraction (SFE) with CO2 in the presence of suitable co-solvent is superior to percolation in extracting polar ferulic acid from Angelica sinensis.