Date seed oil: Phenolic, tocopherol and sterol profiles

Oils extracted from the seeds of two date palm (Phoenix dactylifera L) cultivars, Deglet Nour and Allig, collected from Tunisia, were compared in terms of phenolic, tocopherol and,sterol profiles. These minor components are not only very important for functional properties of oils (oxidation resistance, taste, aroma and color), but could also have many health benefits. Total phenols, considered as the principal source of oil oxidation resistance, ranged from 520.81 for Deglet Nour to 220.32 mg/kg for Allig. High performance liquid chromatography revealed eight identified peaks for which the major component was hydroxytyrosol (10.21%) for Deglet Nour and tyrosol for Allig (8.10%). Total sterol content was 3500 and 3000 mg/kg for Deglet Nour and Allig, respectively. The sterol marker, beta-sitosterol, accounted for 83.31 and 78.66% of total sterols in Deglet Nour and Allig seed oils, respectively. Alpha-tocopherol was the predominant component in both date seed oils (24.97-38.85%)

Finite element analysis and modeling of water absorption by date pits during a soaking process

Date pits for feed preparation or oil extraction are soaked in water to soften before milling or extrusion. Knowledge of water absorption by the date pits helps in better managing the soaking duration. In this research, the process of water absorption by date pits was modeled and analyzed using Fick’s second law of diffusion, finite element approach, and Peleg model. The moisture content of the pits reached to its saturation level of 41.5% (wet basis) after 10 d. The estimated coefficient of diffusion was 9.89×10−12 m2/s. The finite element model with a proposed ellipsoid geometry for a single date pit and the analytical model fitted better to the experimental data with R 2 of 0.98. The former model slightly overestimated the moisture content of the pits during the initial stages of the soaking and the latter model generally underestimated this variable through the entire stages of soaking process