JP7829200B2 - Methods for extracting active ingredients, methods for preparing active ingredients, disinfectants, deodorizers, fragrances, cosmetics, insect repellents, and nutritional supplements. - Google Patents

Description

This invention relates to a method for extracting active ingredients, a method for preparing active ingredients, and to disinfectants, deodorizers, fragrances, cosmetics, insect repellents, and nutritional supplements.

Traditionally, active ingredients such as oils (essential oils) and extracts derived from plants have been widely used. For example, the oil (essential oil) contained in the active ingredient extracted from grapefruit seeds (grapefruit seed extract, sometimes referred to as GSE) is said to be a natural antibiotic, and its effectiveness is outstanding compared to essential oils extracted from other plants. Various GSE products already exist on the market, and their purpose includes disinfection to prevent microbial infections. Unlike alcohol and chlorine-based disinfectants, GSE does not use chemical components, is harmless to humans and animals, and has a non-volatile nature, resulting in sustained disinfecting power.

Such GSE-related technologies can be found, for example, in the technology disclosed in Patent Document 1.

Japanese Patent Publication No. 2010-202632, Japanese Patent Publication No. 2002-112840

Incidentally, the effectiveness and cost of GSE vary greatly depending on the extraction and purification methods. In other words, if the cost is high, widespread use is impossible, no matter how harmless and sustainable it may be.

For example, the typical method for producing GSE (Grapefruit Seed Extract) involves crushing grapefruit seeds, squeezing out the liquid, filtering it to remove impurities, and then heating it to evaporate the water and concentrate it (heat concentration) (simple extraction).

However, grapefruit seeds have a low absolute water content, and their carrier effect for the oil (GSE) extracted simultaneously is weak. Therefore, a method is often used in which organic solvents such as alcohol are mixed in, the grapefruit seeds are dissolved in the alcohol, crushed, extracted, and then the alcohol is evaporated (solvent extraction).

However, both simple extraction and solvent extraction methods currently in use have their own problems.

In other words, in simple extraction, the amount extracted is too small, resulting in significant raw material loss. Furthermore, in heat concentration, while low temperatures are used to prevent essential oil degradation, this process is time-inefficient and results in a very low level of dehydration. Therefore, the final essential oil has low purity, and the time and effort involved result in high essential oil costs.

Furthermore, while solvent extraction allows for efficient extraction of essential oils, complete solvent removal in the final stage is not achieved, leaving trace amounts of solvent behind. To further increase the purity of the essential oils, heating is used to remove water and solvents. However, heating above 80°C is avoided to prevent the destruction of GSEs (Gross Sodium Esters), resulting in inefficient extraction.

Furthermore, solvent extraction presents a problem: the residual solvent makes it difficult to use in halal-certified regions.

Unlike solvents and chlorine-based disinfectants, essential oils extracted from GSE are harmless to humans and animals, environmentally friendly, and possess the characteristics of long-lasting effects due to their non-volatile nature and the fact that their effects are not lost even in organic environments.

Therefore, by providing more efficient extraction and purification methods, we believe that reducing costs and offering disinfectants that can be used in a wide range of situations will help suppress the risk of microbial infection and contribute to society.

This invention was made in view of these circumstances, and aims to provide a method for extracting active ingredients from plants, a method for preparing active ingredients, and a disinfectant, deodorant, fragrance, cosmetic, insect repellent, and nutritional supplement that enable efficient extraction of active ingredients from plants.

To achieve the above objective, the method for extracting an active ingredient according to the present invention is a method for extracting an active ingredient from a plant, characterized in that the active ingredient is extracted from the plant via water.
The extraction of the active ingredient can be carried out under negative pressure.
The extraction of the active ingredient can be carried out by purifying it by removing foreign matter from the active ingredient.
To achieve the above objective, the method for preparing the active ingredient according to the present invention is characterized by adjusting the pH of the active ingredient extracted by the above-described method for extracting the active ingredient to a predetermined value.
To achieve the above objective, the method for preparing the active ingredient according to the present invention is characterized by emulsifying the active ingredient extracted by the above-described method for extracting the active ingredient.
To achieve the above objective, the method for preparing an active ingredient according to the present invention is characterized by irradiating the active ingredient extracted by the above-described method for extracting an active ingredient with ultrasound.
By irradiating with the aforementioned ultrasound, the surfactant component contained in the active ingredient can be emulsified.
The plant-derived surfactant component can be added to the active ingredient.
To achieve the above objective, the disinfectant according to the present invention is characterized by containing an active ingredient prepared by the above-described method for preparing the active ingredient.
To achieve the above objective, the deodorant according to the present invention is characterized by containing an active ingredient prepared by the above-described method for preparing the active ingredient.
To achieve the above objective, the fragrance according to the present invention is characterized by containing an active ingredient prepared by the above-described method for preparing the active ingredient.
To achieve the above objective, the cosmetic product according to the present invention is characterized by containing an active ingredient prepared by the above-described method for preparing the active ingredient.
To achieve the above objective, the insect repellent according to the present invention is characterized by containing an active ingredient prepared by the above-described method for preparing the active ingredient.
To achieve the above objective, the nutritional supplement according to the present invention is characterized by containing an active ingredient prepared by the above-described method for preparing the active ingredient.
To achieve the above objective, the method for extracting an active ingredient according to the present invention is a method for extracting an active ingredient from a plant, characterized by comprising a mixing step of mixing the plant with water, and an extraction step of extracting the active ingredient from the plant mixed with water.

According to the present invention, since the process involves mixing the plant with water and extracting the active ingredient from the plant mixed with water, the water content during extraction increases, leading to a greater carrier effect and enabling efficient extraction of the active ingredient from the plant.

Including a dehydration step to remove the active ingredient allows for the concentration of the active ingredient.

The dehydration step can be carried out by evaporating the water.

If the evaporation of water in the dehydration process is carried out under negative pressure, the boiling point of water can be lowered. Therefore, evaporation can be performed at a lower temperature, reducing the decomposition and destruction of the active ingredients due to temperature.

The process may include a purification step of removing impurities from the active ingredient and purifying it.
The aforementioned plants can be selected, for example, from plants with residual pesticide levels below a predetermined value.

To achieve the above objective, the method for preparing an active ingredient according to the present invention is characterized by including a pH adjustment step in which the pH of the active ingredient extracted by the above-described method for extracting the active ingredient is adjusted to a predetermined value.
According to the present invention, since the above-mentioned pH adjustment step is included, the extracted active ingredients can be controlled and adjusted by pH.

To achieve the above objective, the method for preparing the active ingredient according to the present invention is characterized by including a processing step of emulsifying the active ingredient extracted by the above-described method for extracting the active ingredient.
According to the present invention, since the above processing step is included, even when the active ingredient contains oil and water, it is possible to uniformly disperse the active ingredient by performing the emulsification treatment.
To achieve the above objective, the method for preparing an active ingredient according to the present invention is characterized by including a processing step of irradiating the active ingredient extracted by the above-described method for extracting an active ingredient with ultrasound.
In other words, the processing step can perform an emulsification treatment of the surfactant component contained in the active ingredient by irradiating it with ultrasound.

To achieve the above objective, the disinfectant according to the present invention is characterized by containing an active ingredient prepared by the above-described method for preparing the active ingredient.
To achieve the above objective, the deodorant according to the present invention is characterized by containing an active ingredient prepared by the above-described method for preparing the active ingredient.

To achieve the above objective, the fragrance according to the present invention is characterized by containing an active ingredient prepared by the above-described method for preparing the active ingredient.
To achieve the above objective, the cosmetic product according to the present invention is characterized by containing an active ingredient prepared by the above-described method for preparing the active ingredient.

To achieve the above objective, the insect repellent according to the present invention is characterized by containing a liquid active ingredient prepared by the above-described method for preparing the active ingredient.
To achieve the above objective, the nutritional supplement according to the present invention is characterized by containing an active ingredient prepared by the above-described method for preparing the active ingredient.

According to this invention, it becomes possible to efficiently extract active ingredients from plants.

This figure shows an extraction system for carrying out an extraction method for the active ingredient according to an embodiment of the present invention. This is a flowchart illustrating the method for extracting active ingredients using an extraction system. This figure shows a preparation system for carrying out a method for preparing the active ingredient according to an embodiment of the present invention. This is a flowchart illustrating the method for adjusting the active ingredients using the adjustment system.

[Method for extracting active ingredients]
The method for extracting the active ingredient according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings. Figure 1 is a diagram showing an extraction system for realizing the method for extracting the active ingredient according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to Figure 1, the extraction system 1 comprises a mixer 2, a crusher 3, a first pressure filter 4, a dewaterer 5, a stirrer 6, a heater 7, and a second pressure filter 8. By operating these devices, an extraction method can be carried out to extract liquid active ingredients (hereinafter sometimes simply referred to as active ingredients) from plants via water (water extraction). That is, as shown in Figure 2, the extraction method for liquid active ingredients in this embodiment includes a mixing step 10, a crushing step 20, an extraction step 30, a dewatering step 40, and a purification step 50, enabling water extraction of liquid active ingredients.

In other words, the mixing step 10 is the process of putting plants and water into a mixer (mixer) 2 and operating the mixer 2 to mix them. A crusher 3 is provided inside the mixer 2. The crusher 3 has a configuration with cutting blades on a rotating shaft. The crusher 3 can be a pin mill, grow mill (grinder), hammer mill, shark mill, crusher, cutter mixer, rotary cutter, etc. That is, the mixer 2 is equipped with a complex crusher 3, and by rotating the rotating shaft of the crusher 3, the plants can be crushed while mixing them with water. The mixing step 10 includes a crushing step 20 in which the plants mixed with water are crushed.

Here, the plants mixed in mixer 2 may include, for example, grapefruit or grapefruit seeds. In addition to grapefruit, the plants may also include cypress, tea leaves, bamboo, ginger, wasabi, mushrooms, roses, algae, olives, etc., or their fruits and seeds. In particular, the oil (essential oil) contained in the active ingredient of the liquid extracted from grapefruit seeds (GSE, GSE may hereafter be referred to as "extract containing oil (essential oil) extracted from grapefruit seeds" or "grapefruit seed extract") has very strong antibacterial properties, making it a more preferable embodiment.

Furthermore, while the specific plant variety is not important, it is preferable to select plants with residual pesticide levels below a predetermined threshold. It is even more preferable to select plants that contain no residual pesticides at all. That is, pesticides are often concentrated in seeds, and incorrect plant selection can render the extracted active ingredients unusable. Generally, plants from Asia are known to have high levels of residual pesticides, while those from South America are known to have low levels. Therefore, it is even more preferable to use plants from South America.

Furthermore, the water introduced (hereinafter sometimes simply referred to as "water") serves as a carrier in the mixing step 10 and the crushing step 20, and may include purified water filtered and purified by a predetermined filter, distilled water, ion-exchanged water, pure water, etc.

In the mixing step 10 and the crushing step 20, the weight ratio of the water to the plants can be 0.01 to 0.3, for example, when the plants are grapefruit seeds. Furthermore, it is preferable that the weight ratio of the water to the plants be 0.03 to 0.25, and even more preferable that it be 0.05 to 0.2, when the plants are grapefruit seeds.

The extraction step 30 is a process of extracting liquid active ingredients from the plants crushed in the crushing step 20. The liquid active ingredients extracted from the plants include vegetable oils (for example, grapefruit seed oil (essential oil)) and extracts.

In other words, in the extraction process 30, the plant material crushed in the crushing process 20 is filtered under pressure using a pressure filter 4 such as a filter press, separating it into solid components and liquid active ingredients. The liquid active ingredients can then be extracted together with the added water.

In extraction step 30, filtration is performed using a sieve with a mesh size of 60 to 170 mesh, allowing the solid components to remain on the sieve surface and the liquid active ingredients to remain below. Furthermore, filtration is preferably performed using a sieve with a mesh size of 70 to 140 mesh, and even more preferably using a sieve with a mesh size of 80 to 120 mesh (and even more preferably 100 mesh).

The dehydration step 40 is a process in which the active ingredients of the liquid filtered by the pressure filter 4 are dehydrated using the dehydrator 5. The dehydration step 40 can be carried out by heating the extract containing the active ingredients extracted in the extraction step 30, thereby evaporating the water contained in the extract.

The evaporation of water in the dehydration process 40 can be carried out under negative pressure within the sealed dehydrator 5, or more specifically, under negative pressure within the extract containing the active ingredients in the liquid. The dehydrator 5 functions as a quasi-vacuum device capable of creating a quasi-vacuum.

Specifically, the pressure inside the dehydrator 5, more precisely the pressure of the extract containing the active ingredient in the liquid, is preferably set to -70 to -120 kPa, creating a near-vacuum inside the dehydrator 5, when the plant is grapefruit seeds and the active ingredient in the liquid is an extract (GSE) containing oil (essential oil) extracted from grapefruit seeds. Furthermore, the pressure inside the dehydrator 5, more precisely the pressure of the extract containing the active ingredient in the liquid, is preferably set to -80 to -110 kPa, and even more preferably to -90 to -100 kPa.

Here, the dehydrator 5 is equipped with a stirrer 6 inside. That is, heating of the extract containing the active ingredients in liquid can be performed while stirring the extract with the stirrer 6. The stirrer 6 has a rotating shaft with stirring blades. Furthermore, when heating the extract containing the active ingredients in liquid, in the case of an extract (GSE) containing oil (essential oil) extracted from grapefruit seeds, the temperature inside the dehydrator 6 can be maintained in the range of 30 to 50°C.

In other words, by creating a near-vacuum inside the dehydrator 5 as described above, the boiling point of water is lowered, allowing only water to be evaporated at a low temperature of 30-50°C. Plant extracts containing oil (essential oil) extracted from grapefruit seeds (GSE) are often organic, and their active ingredients decompose and are destroyed at temperatures around 80°C. Therefore, separation and extraction at the normal boiling point of water (100°C) present a significant challenge. Since the boiling point of the oil (essential oil) contained in grapefruit seed extract (GSE) is higher than that of water, evaporating the water at a low temperature of 30-50°C as described above allows for efficient recovery of the oil (essential oil) components without destroying them.

The heating of the extract containing the liquid active ingredient can be performed by installing a heater 7 outside the dehydrator 5, and the heating can be done indirectly via the dehydrator 5 using the heater 7.

The dewatering unit 5 is equipped with piping 5a, a check valve 5b, and a vacuum pump 5c. Piping 5a is for removing the water evaporated by heating from the dewatering unit 5 and is connected to the upper side of the dewatering unit 5. The check valve 5b is a valve that discharges the evaporated water from piping 5a to the outside and prevents outside air from flowing into piping 5a. The vacuum pump 5c is located downstream of the check valve 5b and can continuously suck up the evaporated water while maintaining negative pressure and discharge it to the outside.

The purification step 50 is a process in which the extract containing the active ingredients in the degassed liquid is further filtered under pressure using a pressure filter 8 such as a filter press, thereby removing solid impurities from the extract containing the active ingredients and purifying the active ingredients in the liquid.

In the purification process 50, filtration is performed using a sieve with a mesh size of 270 to 400 mesh, allowing impurities to be removed from the top of the sieve and the active ingredients of the purified liquid to remain below. Furthermore, it is preferable to perform filtration using a sieve with a mesh size of 325 to 400 mesh.

As explained above, the method for extracting active ingredients according to this embodiment, more specifically, by extracting the active ingredient from plants mixed with water, results in a higher water content during extraction, leading to a greater carrier effect and enabling efficient extraction of the active ingredient from plants.

Furthermore, since the process includes a dehydration step to remove the active ingredient, the active ingredient can be concentrated.

Furthermore, since the evaporation of water in the dehydration process 30 is carried out under negative pressure, the boiling point of water can be lowered. That is, the evaporation of water can be performed at a lower temperature, reducing the decomposition and destruction of active ingredients due to temperature.

[Method for adjusting the active ingredient]
The method for preparing the active ingredient according to the embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings. Figure 3 is a diagram showing a preparation system for realizing the method for preparing the active ingredient according to the embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to Figure 3, the adjustment system 100 has an emulsification tank 101 and a pH meter 102. These devices allow for the emulsification of the active ingredient in the liquid extracted by the above-described extraction method, while simultaneously adjusting its pH to a predetermined value. That is, the liquid active ingredient adjustment method of this embodiment includes a dilution step 110, an emulsification step 120, and a pH adjustment step 130, as shown in Figure 4. (Of course, in this liquid active ingredient adjustment method, the active ingredient also includes the liquid active ingredient (GSE) extracted from grapefruit seeds, similar to the active ingredient extraction method described above.)

In other words, the dilution step 110 is a step in which the active ingredients of the liquid extracted by the extraction method described above are further diluted by adding water and mixing. For example, when using oil (essential oil) extracted from plants as a disinfectant, it is diluted with water in a range of approximately 100 ppm to 3000 ppm depending on the area to be disinfected (hands, cutting boards, doorknobs, masks, vomit, air, etc.).

Here, the water may include purified water filtered and purified using a predetermined filter, distilled water, ion-exchanged water, pure water, etc., as in the extraction method described above.

The emulsification process 120 is a process that emulsifies the active ingredients of the liquid mixed with water added in the dilution process 110. In other words, the active ingredients of the extracted liquid often contain oil (essential oil), and simply adding water for dilution results in poor dispersibility because the water and oil separate. Therefore, primary processing of the oil (essential oil) and subsequent emulsification (emulsification) treatment are necessary.

The emulsification treatment of the liquid active ingredient can be performed by irradiating the liquid active ingredient with ultrasound using an ultrasonic generator, thereby emulsifying the surfactant components contained in the active ingredient through ultrasonic diffusion (the ultrasonic generator is provided in the emulsification tank 101). While using synthetic surfactants would simplify the emulsification process, this would deviate from the concept of using natural products, raising safety concerns. Therefore, in the dilution step 110 described above, the extracted liquid active ingredient is diluted with water at a ratio of 2 to 10 times its weight, and then ultrasonic stirring is performed by irradiating it with ultrasound. The oil (essential oil) contained in the extracted active ingredient also contains some natural surfactant components from plants. This primary processing using ultrasonic diffusion brings out the activity of these surfactant components, enabling emulsification with water.

Thus, the reason for imparting surfactant effects to active ingredients is to improve their dispersibility with the solvent (water) and, when applied to a subject (microorganisms, skin, food, insects, etc.), to cause the subject to lose surface tension, thereby uniformly covering the subject. By losing surface tension, the effect on the subject (disinfection, insect repellent, cosmetic, internal absorption, etc.) can be maximized.

Furthermore, in the emulsification treatment step 120, other plant-derived surfactant components may be added to the active ingredient of the extracted liquid before irradiating it with ultrasound.

The pH adjustment step 130 is a process to adjust the pH of the active ingredients in the liquid emulsified in the emulsification step 120 to a predetermined value. Specifically, the amount of water added in the dilution step 110 is determined by pH control because the oil content (essential oil) in the extracted active ingredients is a natural product, and therefore the quality of the essential oil (active ingredient concentration) varies depending on the origin of the plant and the harvesting time. Active ingredients are often strongly acidic, and a higher pH indicates a lower concentration of active ingredients. Therefore, the dilution ratio of the water used in the primary processing is set to a minimum standard pH (for example, GSE has a pH of around 3), and water is added to reach that standard value for dilution. By performing this process, the final secondary processing can be performed using a common dilution ratio according to the purpose (concentration for each application), stabilizing the quality (active ingredient concentration, color).

The active ingredients in the liquid prepared using the above methods can be used as disinfectants, deodorizers, fragrances, cosmetics, and nutritional supplements.

In other words, the present invention makes it possible to provide disinfectants, deodorizers, fragrances, cosmetics, insect repellents, and nutritional supplements containing the active ingredient of a liquid prepared by the above-described method for preparing the active ingredient of a liquid. As described above, because the active ingredient is given a surfactant effect, when the active ingredient comes into contact with a subject (microorganisms, skin, food, insects, etc.), it can cause the surface tension on the surface of the subject to be lost, uniformly covering the subject and causing it to lose its surface tension.

As explained above, the method for preparing the active ingredient according to this embodiment includes the pH adjustment step 130, allowing the extracted active ingredient to be controlled and adjusted by pH.

Furthermore, since the process includes an emulsification step 120 for emulsifying the active ingredient, even if the active ingredient contains oil and water, the emulsification process makes it possible to uniformly disperse the active ingredient.

As is clear from the above, the active ingredient extraction method according to this embodiment allows for the efficient extraction of active ingredients from various plants according to the purpose, providing environmentally friendly natural functional raw materials. Specifically, the running costs during extraction are limited to the use of water and electricity, and the method minimizes electricity consumption. While organic solvent extraction has traditionally been considered efficient, organic solvents are flammable, making continuous extraction unsafe. Furthermore, storage in the workplace requires management in accordance with hazardous materials laws; however, this extraction method significantly reduces such problems. The active ingredient extraction and preparation methods of this embodiment provide a method for efficiently performing water extraction while ensuring safety.

1: Extraction system 2: Mixer 3: Crusher 4: Pressure filter 5: Dehydrator 5a: Piping 5b: Check valve 5c: Vacuum pump 6: Stirrer 7: Heater 8: Pressure filter 10: Mixing process 20: Crushing process 30: Extraction process 40: Dehydration process 50: Purification process 100: Adjustment system 101: Emulsification tank 102: pH meter 110: Dilution process 120: Emulsification process 130: pH adjustment process

Claims (1)

A method for extracting active ingredients from grapefruit seeds,
A mixing step which includes a crushing step in which the grapefruit seeds and water are put into a mixer and crushed while being mixed,
The mixing step, which includes the crushing step, separates the crushed grapefruit seeds from solid components and liquid active ingredients containing the oil and extract of the grapefruit seeds by filtering them under pressure using a pressure filter, and extracts the liquid active ingredients together with water in an extraction step.
A dehydration step is performed by using a dehydrator to dehydrate the extract containing the active ingredients of the liquid obtained in the extraction step,
A purification step is performed to purify the active ingredients of the liquid by further filtering the extract containing the active ingredients of the liquid that has been dehydrated in the dehydration step under pressure using a pressure filter, thereby removing solid foreign matter from the extract.
Equipped with,
In the mixing step, the weight ratio of the water to the seeds is set to 0.05 to 0.2.
The dewatering device is equipped with a stirrer,
In the dehydration step, the extract of the active ingredient in the liquid is heated while being stirred , and the pressure is made negative.
In order to create a negative pressure in the extract within the dehydrator, the pressure should be set to -90 to -100 kPa.
Furthermore, the temperature achieved by heating under the negative pressure is set to a range of 30 to 50°C , which allows only the water to evaporate from the extract containing the active ingredients of the liquid without destroying the oil.
A method for extracting an active ingredient characterized by the following.