Marcin Studnicki

The use of waste brings many environmental and economic benefits to the country. One of the by-products of the fruit industry in Poland is rose fruits pomace. Rose fruit has great nutritional value and is a rich source of beneficial bioactive compounds. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of temperature (25, 45, and 65 °C), time extraction (15, 30, 45, and 60 min), and different solvents on the recovery of total phenolic compounds (measured by Folin–Ciocalteu) and L-ascorbic acid (measured by the HPLC method) of rose fruits (Rosa rugosa) pomace. Higher temperatures (45 °C and 65 °C) showed a higher content of L-ascorbic acid but also faster degradation of this acid after 30 min of extraction. The highest content of polyphenolic compounds was obtained using 50% acetone at 65 °C (average 37.28 mg gallic acid equivalents/g of freeze-dried pomace) and the lowest using 100% acetone at 25 °C (average 12.46 mg gallic acid equivalents/g of freeze-dried pomace). The highest yield of L-ascorbic acid from pomace was obtained using water as a solvent (average 33.64 mg L-ascorbic acid/g of freeze-dried pomace). Rose fruits pomace extracts could therefore be used as natural bioactive molecules for many industrial applications.