Study of acorn oils from two oak varieties (Quercus ilex and Quercus suber)

In this work we propose studying acorn oils from two varieties of oaks, holm oak (Quercus Hex) and cork oak (Quercus suber) from Great Kabylie (Algeria). Those oils are extracted in a soxhlet apparatus using two solvents: hexane and ethylic ether. The results obtained show that the lipidic fraction, mostly concentrated in the acorn cotyledons, represents a not inconsiderable reserve for the acorn of oak, much more marked for the acorn of holm oak with a rate of approximately 9% versus 5% for the cork oak, when the extraction is carried out with hexane. The oil yield obtained by ethyl ether is in all the cases slightly higher than the one of oils extracted by hexane. The analysis showed that oils of holm oak acorn are acceptable. On the other hand oils obtained from cork oak acorn are very acid; nevertheless, their content in non-saponifiable matters is higher. The fatty acid composition of the two kinds of oils is close despite few differences. For example traces of behenic acid were found in every oil obtained from cork oak acorn. It is very present in oils obtained from whole holm oak acorn but does not appear in their peeled counterparts. Besides oils of cork oak acorn are richer in unsaturated fatty acids. We can mention too that those acorn oils are very similar to olive oils and pomace olive oils.