Physical and Chemical Properties of Fruit Oil of Pistacia lentiscus L. Growing Wild in Libya

A Ben Khayal, Faheem Abdulkareim; Belgasim, Salma Mahmoud; Boubrig, Saad Youssf; Zaed, Mohamed Saleh; Ardia, Yahya Khamis

doi:10.21608/asejaiqjsae.2025.426484

Physical and Chemical Properties of Fruit Oil of Pistacia lentiscus L. Growing Wild in Libya

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

¹ Omar Al-Mukhtar University Faculty of Agriculture Food Science and Technology

² Omar Al-Mukhtar University Faculty of Agriculture Food Science Technology

³ Food and Drug Control Center-Libya

10.21608/asejaiqjsae.2025.426484

Abstract

This study was conducted on the fruit oil of the Pistacia lentiscus L. wild growing wild in the Jabal Akhdar region - Eastern Libya. The results of chemical analysis showed that the ripe (black) fruits contain 31.33% moisture, 7.47% crude protein, 4.09% ash, 36.26% crude fat, 23.34% fiber and nitrogen-free extract 28.84% based on the dry weight. The results of the physical-chemical properties of Pistacia lentiscus fruit oil also showed that the specific gravity of the oil was 0.9060, the refractive index was 1.4701, and the free fatty acids were 2.05% (estimated as oleic acid). As for the iodine number, its value was 90.73, while the saponification number was (174.33), and the peroxide number for the crude oil was 4.0 m Eq O₂/kg. The results also showed that the fatty acid composition of Pistacia lentiscus fruit oil was oleic acid (47.82%), linoleic acid (25.43%), palmitic acid (22.37%), Palmitoleic acid (2.56%), stearic acid (1.19%), and linoleic acid (0.63%). The percentage of unsaturated fatty acids was (76.44%), while saturated (23.56%). The oil fractions were separated into 6 classes using Thin layer chromatography, and triacylglycerols were the main component, while polar lipids (phospholipids) were not easily identifiable. From the aforementioned results, the fruits that grows naturally in the Jabal Akhdar region can be considered as an oil-producing fruit, in addition, the oil was similar in properties to some of the other cooking oils used in food consumption. It can also be a good source of unsaturated fatty acids, which have good health effects.

Keywords

Main Subjects