Extraction, concentration, and storage of butterfly pea anthocyanin for commercialization

Abstract

An attempt has been made to conserve the nutrition of butterfly pea by modifying the production process. In this paper, butterfly pea syrup was prepared through ultrasound assisted extraction (UAE) of butterfly pea flower using water at ultrasound frequency of 40kHz and initial temperature of 50 °C for 30 min. Extraction was modified by addition of sugar and citric acid. Before separation of extract, butterfly pea mixture was adjusted to contain 181,25 g sugar and 2.875 g citric acid per L water. The extract was then concentrated by vacuum evaporation at 50 °C for 2–6 h. The concentrated extracts were stored at 6 °C and 30 °C for 4 weeks. Each experiment was run triplicate and the effect of each treatment on the anthocyanin concentration was measured using UV–Vis Spectrophotometer. Results indicated that presence of citric acid and sugar during extraction affect extraction and shelf life of butterfly pea extract. The presence of citric acid and sugar in anthocyanin extracts also prolongs their shelf life.