Comparative Study of the Lipid Profiles of Oils from Kernels of Peanut, Babassu, Coconut, Castor and Grape by GC-FID and Raman Spectroscopy

The characterization of the lipid profiles of oils extracted from the kernel of seeds and nuts of peanut (Arachis hypogaea), babassu (Attalea speciosa), coconut (Cocos nucifera), castor (Ricinus communis) and grape (Vitis vinifera) was performed by using Raman spectroscopy and gas chromatography with flame ionization detector (GC-FID). Chromatographic analyses showed that coconut and babassu oils are composed essentially by saturated fatty acids (SFA), whereas the others are composed mainly by unsaturated fatty acids (UFA). The comparison of commercial and homemade castor oils showed the former have a lower level of ricinoleic acid at ca. 58%. Spectroscopic analyses of three distinct castor oils showed their profiles could be differentiated by marker features ascribed to carbonyl modes which were correlated with storage time. The comparison between the Raman spectra of standard samples of fatty acids with the samples of oils allowed the assignment of the spectroscopic features and the characterization of marker bands for the degree of unsaturation.