Physiochemical Parameters of Extracted Castor Oil in Saudi Arabia

Objectives: This study aimed at the extraction and characterization of castor seed oil purchased from local market in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Methods: Castor oil was extracted from beans via extraction with n-hexane by using Soxhlet apparatus. The oil was subjected to different test for characterizations. Results: A positive test with the disappearance of the purple color of KMnO4 indicated the presence of double bond. Also the reaction of theoil with concentrated H2SO4 giving reddish brown color, has confirmed the presence of double bond. The physiochemical parameterswere carried out by simple reaction and the result has showed that the color of the oil is pale yellow color, the density is 1.01 g/mL, peroxide value is 12.8 Meq/K, acid number is 0.6288 mg KOH/g and saponification value is 171.105 mg/g. Conclusion: The studied castor seeds contain a high percentage of oil, which is rich in unsaturated oil.