EXTRACTION OF EWES MILK CREAM WITH SUPERCRITICAL CARBON-DIOXIDE

The extraction of ewe's milk cream by supercritical carbon dioxide in the pressure range 9-30 MPa (90-300 bar) and at temperatures of 40-degrees-C and 50-degrees-C was studied. The solubility of total fat increased with pressure at both temperatures until a plateau was reached. The extraction of cholesterol also increased with pressure until a plateau was reached and it was higher at 50-degrees-C than at 40-degrees-C when the pressure was greater-than-or-equal-to 15 MPa (150 bar). The triglyceride composition of each extract, determined by GC, showed that extracts obtained at lower pressures were enriched in short-chain triglycerides and their concentration decreased as the pressure increased. In the other hand, long-chain triglycerides were enriched in the extracts obtained at higher pressures and their concentration rose with increasing pressure.