Development of Green and Efficient Extraction Methods of Quercetin from Red Onion Scales Wastes Using Factorial Design for Method Optimization: A Comparative Study

Waste resulting from edible plants is considered one of the best sources of valuable phytochemicals. A promising approach for using these appreciated wastes is extracting precious medically important constituents, for example, free quercetin. Two new cost-effective and green extraction methods are introduced in the present study: ultrasound-assisted glycerol extraction (UAGE) and microwave-assisted extraction (MAE). These extraction protocols are optimized using factorial design to define the highest yield of extraction, and HPLC-UV at 370 nm was used as a method of yield analysis. Quercetin remained stable during the whole process in both extraction protocols. A standard addition technique was performed to quantify quercetin in different extracts and eliminate the matrix effect. In UAGE and MAE, extraction yields were 16.55 +/- 0.81 and 27.20 +/- 1.55 mg/1g from red onion scales on a dry base, respectively. The amount of quercetin extracted using MAE was superior to UAGE in terms of time and yield. A greenness assessment of the offered studies compared to previously published relevant extraction methods was performed using the analytical eco-scale assessment method (ESA) and national environmental methods index (NEMI). MAE showed to be a greener method with a higher ESA score and a greener NEMI pictogram.

Automated summary

This study introduces two new extraction methods, ultrasound-assisted glycerol extraction and microwave-assisted extraction, which were optimized for extraction efficiency using HPLC-UV and factorial design. The results showed that microwave-assisted extraction was superior to ultrasound-assisted glycerol extraction in terms of quercetin yield and time efficiency.