Piotr Kamiński, MSc
Employer: Sieć Badawcza Łukasiewicz – Instytut Nowych Syntez Chemicznych
Thesis supervisor: prof. dr hab. inż. Zbigniew Kobus
Discipline: Mechanical engineering

„Development of the technology fundamentals of biologically active extracts with use of subcritical water”

Water is a polar solvent whose polarity is highly dependent on the process parameters. It is particularly useful for the extraction process of chemical compounds with various degree of polarity from materials of plant origin. Due to the unique nature of water, its use in extraction processes has been known and used since the down of time.  Despite this, water still finds new applications in modern technologies of extracting biologically active compounds from plant raw materials, enabling the use of these compounds in many industries. Plant-derived polar compounds constitute an important group of antioxidants. They are used in the food, cosmetic and pharmaceutical industry.

Application of subcritical water extraction eliminates the use of organic solvents, affecting safety, high quality and wide application of plant extracts. Subcritical water allows extraction of both polar and some non-polar substances.

The aim of the work is to develop the basics of the plant extract production from biomass with use of subcritical water technology and to prepare a construction project of an industrial scale  pressure extractor.