Effects of Different Extraction Methods on the Quality of Peony Seed Oil and Its Emulsion Properties

Peony seed oil, as a functional oil rich in ω-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids and natural antioxidant components, has its extraction process directly affecting the maintenance of bioactive substances and the added value of the product. In this analysis, the effects of wet milling-micronized continuous leaching method (MCI), solvent extraction (SE), soxhlet extraction (SOXE) and ethanol-assisted enzymatic hydrolysis (EAH) on the quality of peony seed oil were comprehensive quality assessment, and the emulsification process was optimized. Oil production efficiency and key physicochemical parameters, acid value, peroxide value, saponification value, and iodine value, as well as bioactive compounds including β-sitosterol, γ-tocopherol, and squalene, fatty acid composition and functional properties (DPPH radical scavenging) and emulsification properties of peony seed oil were analyzed. It was shown that the MCI method yielded the highest oil yield (34.77%), which was 12.3%, 18.6% and 25.4% higher than those obtained by SE, SOXE and EAH methods, respectively. In addition, micronized continuous leaching method MCI significantly retained thermosensitive components such as α-linolenic acid (48.07%), β-sitosterol (948.66 mg/kg), γ-tocopherol (543.92 mg/kg) and squalene (130.88 mg/kg). To evaluate the emulsification properties, emulsions were prepared with different concentrations of emulsifiers emulsions were prepared. The emulsion stability was best at an emulsifier concentration of 15%, the particle size was concentrated at 0.5-3.5 μm, the viscosity showed a positive correlation with concentration, while the variation in zeta potential indicated a combined stabilization effect of electrostatic repulsion and steric hindrance. In conclusion, this study pioneered the low-temperature short-time MCI technology, which broke the bottleneck of traditional extraction and solvent methods in destroying the heat-sensitive components and constructed the “extraction-emulsification” process system, establishing a theoretical foundation for enhanced utilization of peony seed oil in functional foods and cosmetic formulations. These research results provide key technological breakthroughs for the high-value application of peony seed oil.