ROSEMARY EXTRACT CAN BE USED AS A NATURAL PROTECTIVE AGENT AGAINST DECOMPOSITION OF FREE FATTY ACIDS

Abstract

Rosemary extract usage as a natural material to prevent the decomposition of free fatty acids (pure oleic acid) was investigated in this study. Free fatty acids in general are an important composition of edible oils and other food stuff. Monitoring of fatty acids direct in edible oils is impossible mission because they are in low level in real samples and interferences from other components with similar structure are too high. Pure oleic acid was used as model compound to further understand its decomposition under thermal treatment at boiling point into aldehydes and other components and to show the effect of rosemary oil. Density and iodine value were analyzed for all samples followed by FTIR-spectroscopy. Pure oleic acid, oleic acid with stainless steel Cr-Ni as a catalytic presence and third samples contain oleic acid, stainless steel and rosemary oil 1 % as an antioxidant component were analyzed. Density and iodine value decrease which is an indication of structural changes of oleic acid. FTIR spectroscopy on the other hand shows clearly the structural changes and furthermore confirms that presence of rosemary oil on oleic acid with stainless steel Cr-Ni plays the role of a natural protective agent against decomposition of oleic acid.

Keywords

• oleic acid
• rosemary oil
• ftir-spectroscopy
• natural antioxidant