Avocado Seed Waste as a Green Catalyst for the Sustainable Oxidation of Limonene with Molecular Oxygen

Sylwia Gajewska, Joanna Siemak, Agnieszka Wróblewska () and Beata Michalkiewicz ()
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Sylwia Gajewska: Faculty of Chemical Technology and Engineering, Department of Catalytic and Sorbent Materials Engineering, West Pomeranian University of Technology in Szczecin, Piastów Ave. 42, 71-065 Szczecin, Poland
Joanna Siemak: Faculty of Chemical Technology and Engineering, Department of Catalytic and Sorbent Materials Engineering, West Pomeranian University of Technology in Szczecin, Piastów Ave. 42, 71-065 Szczecin, Poland
Agnieszka Wróblewska: Faculty of Chemical Technology and Engineering, Department of Catalytic and Sorbent Materials Engineering, West Pomeranian University of Technology in Szczecin, Piastów Ave. 42, 71-065 Szczecin, Poland
Beata Michalkiewicz: Faculty of Chemical Technology and Engineering, Department of Catalytic and Sorbent Materials Engineering, West Pomeranian University of Technology in Szczecin, Piastów Ave. 42, 71-065 Szczecin, Poland

Sustainability, 2025, vol. 17, issue 9, 1-21

Abstract: Avocado is a rich source of numerous nutrients, such as micro- and macroelements, essential unsaturated fatty acids, and vitamins essential for the correct functioning of the body. Consequently, its consumption has significantly increased in recent years. The primary edible part of the fruit is the flesh, while the seed is still considered biowaste. Currently, various methods for utilization of this biowaste are being explored, prompting the authors of this work to investigate the catalytic properties of ground avocado seeds. Dried, ground avocado seeds were used as the catalyst in the environmentally friendly oxidation of limonene with oxygen. The process was carried out in mild conditions, without the use of any solvent and at atmospheric pressure. The studies examined the influence of temperature (70–110 °C), the amount of the catalyst (0.5–5.0 wt%), and the reaction time (15–360 min). The analyses of the post-reaction mixtures were performed using the gas chromatography method (GC). The maximum value of the conversion of limonene obtained during the tests was 36 mol%. The main products of this process were as follows: 1,2-epoxylimonene, carveol, and perillyl alcohol. Also, the following compounds were determined in the post-reaction mixtures: carvone and 1,2-epoxylimonene diol. The studied process is interesting, taking into account both the management of waste in the form of avocado seeds and possible wide applications of limonene transformation products in medicine, cosmetics and the food industry. Given that limonene is now increasingly being extracted from waste orange peels, this is also a good way to manage the future naturally derived limonene and reduce the amount of waste orange peels. The presented studies fit perfectly with the goals of sustainable development and circular economy and may be the basis for the future development of “green technology” for obtaining value-added oxygenated derivatives of limonene. These studies show the use of waste biomass in the form of avocado seeds to obtain a green catalyst. In this context, our research presents an effective way of waste valorization.

Keywords: avocado seed biomass; waste valorization; biomass-derived materials; green catalyst; sustainable limonene oxidation; 1,2-epoxylimonene; carveol; perillyl alcohol (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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