Phytochemical is an umbrella term for plant-derived (greek word “phyto” means plant) chemicals, which includes a wide variety of compounds that occur naturally in plants. Many phytochemicals are known for their beneficial effects on human health and are therefore highly valued compounds of nutrition. Terpenes, phytosterols, isothiocyanates, organosulfides, stylbenes, isoflavonoids, alkaloids, phenolic acids and anthocyanides are the most important sub-groups of phytochemicals, which include numerous phytochemicals such as caffeine and theobromine (alkaloids); allicin, glutathione and sulphoraphane (organosulfides); ptherostilbene and resveratrol (stylbenes); or epicatechin, naringin and quercitin (flavonoids) to name just a few.
To use phytochemicals as drugs or nutritional supplements, the plant chemicals must be isolated from the cell matrix. Ultrasonic extraction is a powerful and reliable method to release phytochemicals from plants such as vegetables, herbs, fruits, roots, and bark. Ultrasonic extraction equipment is used in small and large scale, e.g. for the production of terpenes from hemp and cannabis, quercetin from apples, tea and onion, allicin from garlic, caffeine from coffee, theobromine form cocoa beans or ellagic acid from pomegranate.
Intense ultrasound waves are used to create acoustic cavitation, whose shear forces disrupts cell walls and flush the phytochemicals from the cell interior into the solvent. As a non-thermal method, ultrasonic extraction prevents the thermal degradation of heat-sensitive compounds and results in high-quality extracts. High extraction efficiency, (almost) complete extraction, rapid processing and safe operation are further advantages of ultrasonic extraction.
Read more about ultrasonic processors and their use in phytochemical extraction!