Effects of location and extraction solvent on physico chemical properties of Moringa stenopetala seed oil

This research was initiated to evaluate the physicochemical property of crude oil from Moringa stenopetala (M. Stenopetala) seed collected from three locations (Damba Gofa, Shelle and Konso) which wasextracted with two solvents (hexane and petroleum ether). Physical properties of crude oil varied from 34.8- 44.3%, 0.8–0.9, 0.8–0.9gcm(3)and 1.4–1.5 at 40 °C for yield, specific gravity, relative density and refractive index, respectively. The chemical properties of the crude oil varied from 0.1 – 0.3mg KOHg(−1), 76.5–91.6g I2 100g(−1), 17.6–20.6 mEqKg(−1), 154.0–199.3mg KOHg(−1) oil and 0.2–0.4mgg(−1)for Free fatty acid(FFA), iodine value, peroxide value, saponification value and acid value respectively. Two-way interaction effect of all physical and chemical properties showed a significant difference (p < 0.05) except the refractive index. The finding indicates that oil extracted with Hexane from Konso had a better quality. The extraction of oil using hexane from M. stenopetala seed could be of great importance in edible crude oil production. Further investigation should be done on oxidative stability of crude oilof M. Stenopetala.