EFFECT OF ETHANOL DEACIDIFICATION ON LIPID CLASS COMPOSITION, THERMAL PROPERTIES, AND CRYSTALLIZATION KINETICS OF BABASSU OIL (ATTALEA SPECIOSA)

Babassu oil (Attalea speciosa) is a lauric acid-rich vegetable oil with significant potential in the pharmaceutical and food industries, particularly as a lipid matrix for incorporating lipophilic bioactive compounds. Its technological functionality depends on its lipid composition and crystallization behavior, both of which minor components such as free fatty acids (FFAs) and partial acylglycerols can influence. Understanding how the removal of these compounds affects thermal properties is crucial for developing lipid-based formulations. Therefore, this study aimed to evaluate the effect of ethanol deacidification on the physicochemical properties, lipid class composition, thermal transitions, and apparent crystallization kinetics of babassu oil. To achieve this, crude oil was purified through five successive extractions with 96% ethanol, followed by solvent removal under vacuum filtration. The crude (OBB) and purified (OBR) oils for acid value, instrumental color, size-exclusion chromatography (HPSEC), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), solid fat content (SFC) via nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), and cloud point and induction times using an optical analyzer. Deacidification reduced the acid value by 91.9%, decreasing from 7.70 ± 0.17 to 0.62 ± 0.10 mg KOH/g. HPSEC analysis revealed that OBB contained 99.002 ± 0.111% triacylglycerols (TG), 0.796 ± 0.108% diacylglycerols (DG), and 0.202 ± 0.005% monoacylglycerols plus fatty acids. In OBR, DG and minor components were no longer quantifiable, with TG reaching 100.000 ± 0.000%. Lovibond color values ​​for red and yellow decreased from 1.30 ± 0.08 to 0.78 ± 0.25 and from 4.60 ± 0.36 to 2.58 ± 0.10, respectively. The cloud point increased from 10.8 °C (OBB) to 15.9 °C (OBR). Crystallization peaks obtained via DSC shifted from 5.58 ± 0.11 and −7.56 ± 0.45 °C (OBB) to 7.95 ± 0.30 and −0.57 ± 0.51 °C (OBR), while the enthalpy of fusion increased from 79.74 ± 6.49 to 95.33 ± 3.71 J/g. The solid fat content (SFC) was significantly higher in the OBR, with notable increases at 15 °C (from 48.43 ± 0.18% to 55.96 ± 0.23%) and 20 °C (from 24.49 ± 0.16% to 31.88 ± 0.34%). At the four standard isothermal temperatures (10–18 °C), induction times were 23.7% to 91.7% shorter for the OBR sample; at 15 °C, they decreased from 2.8 to 1.4 min, indicating a more rapid onset of crystallization. In conclusion, deacidification with ethanol effectively purified the babassu oil by removing free fatty acids and minor acylglycerols, which act as plasticizers and inhibitors of crystal growth, thereby resulting in a more uniform and rapid crystallization process. These structural modifications improve the solid fat content and thermal transition profiles of the oil, confirming the suitability of the purified babassu oil as a structured lipid matrix for the incorporation of lipophilic bioactive compounds.