Yucca schidigera Leaf Extracts as Emulsifiers in Oil-in-Water Systems
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.63561/jacsr.v2i4.1017Keywords:
Ethanol, hexane, distilled, synthetic, natural, surfactants, phytochemicalsAbstract
Emulsification ability of Yucca schidigera leaves extracts for oil-in-water phase was investigated with three different solvent extracts; ethanol, n-hexane, and distilled water. N-hexane, ethanol, and distilled water extracts of the leaves were prepared using soxhlet extractor. Phytochemical analysis of the different leaf extracts was done using a GC-MS spectrophotometer. The results obtained show the presence of many bioactive compounds such as: saponins, tannins, alkaloids, flavonoids, etc. Different concentrations of the oil-in-water with the extracts (1000, 2000, 3000 ppm) were made. The volume of water that separated from the solution was measured to determine the emulsification ability of the different solvent extracts. At 3000 ppm of the extracts, distilled water and ethanol extracts emulsified the oil in water, although the distilled water extract gave a better emulsification result than the ethanol extract. This is attributed to the presence of a greater percentage of rich surfactant-like compounds in the distilled water extract which aided the reduction of the surface tension between the two immiscible liquids. The hexane extract did not emulsify at 1000 ppm, but at 2000 ppm and 3000 ppm slight emulsion that was stable for about 30 minutes was formed. This implies that hexane may not have extracted a good amount of surfactant-like molecules that would have aided the emulsification process. The ability of a synthetic emulsifier was also investigated and it produced good results. The prepared emulsifiers: n-hexane, distilled water, and ethanol extracts of Yucca schidigera leaves are suitable alternatives to synthetic emulsifiers because they are available and eco-friendly but there is a need to find out the concentration for optimum.
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