Thanks to sustainable extraction technologies, it is possible to obtain pure, safe and high-quality ingredients while preserving the original properties of raw materials and minimising environmental impact.
Sustainable Extraction Technologies: Overcoming Industry Challenges
The growing demand for natural, organic and sustainable products is driving innovation in sustainable extraction methods.
Traditional extraction techniques face several challenges, such as solvent residue contamination, negative environmental impact, and thermal degradation of heat-sensitive compounds. These limitations highlight the need for more efficient and sustainable technologies that also ensure high performance.
Supercritical CO₂ extraction has emerged as an excellent alternative. It enables the production of solvent-free, pure extracts and operates at low temperatures, preserving the integrity of sensitive compounds. Additionally, the CO₂ used in the process can be recycled, making it a truly sustainable extraction method. Its high selectivity also ensures the targeted extraction of specific compounds, resulting in high-quality, effective ingredients for the cosmetic, food and pharmaceutical industries.
Key advantages include:
- Ingredient purity: No toxic chemical solvents are used, resulting in safe, clean extracts.
- Selective extraction: Ability to isolate specific active compounds while preserving their functional properties.
- Enhanced stability and quality: Active ingredients are protected from oxidation and degradation.
Supercritical CO₂ Potential: Natural Source Cosmetic Ingredients
This technology offers the flexibility to develop a wide range of products and applications. In the cosmetics sector, it enables the production of ingredients from various natural matrices, preserving their beneficial properties.
Supercritical CO₂ extraction allows the efficient and high-quality production of:
- Essential oils
- Botanical extracts
- Vitamins and minerals
- Fatty acids and triglycerides
- Carotenoids, polyphenols and phytosterols
- Natural pigments
- Natural waxes
- Volatile compounds
Extracts can be obtained from sources such as:
- Berries: juniper berry
- Roots: ginger, angelica
- Seeds: amaranth oil, cumin oil, chia oil, pomegranate seed oil, rosehip seed oil, moringa seed oil
- Nuts and cereals: almond oil, rice bran oil, wheat germ oil
- Flowers and/or leaves: arnica oil, chamomile, lavender, calendula oil
Supercritical CO₂ Potential: Active Ingredients for Pharmaceutical Use
This technology offers an innovative, safe and sustainable extraction solution for obtaining active ingredients from natural sources. In the pharmaceutical sector, it enables the production of highly specific extracts without compromising the stability of sensitive compounds, all in compliance with GMP standards for therapeutic use.
Supercritical CO₂ extraction enables the efficient and high-quality production of:
- Active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs)
- Standardised herbal extracts
- Lipophilic compounds with therapeutic functions
- Active substances with high stability and purity
- High-concentration extracts ready for formulation
Extracts can be obtained from sources such as:
- Pure cocoa butter: obtained as a fine, stable white powder that melts on skin contact
- Medicinal plants: selected vegetable matrices according to the client’s therapeutic needs
- Other natural ingredients: processed under controlled pressure and temperature, tailored to pharmaceutical specifications.
Supercritical CO₂ Potential: High-Value Functional Food Ingredients
This sustainable extraction technology offers the versatility to develop high-value functional ingredients from natural plant-based sources. In the food sector, it enables the extraction of clean, nutrient-rich oils, antioxidants and bioactive compounds for use in food supplements, flavourings or healthy ingredients.
Supercritical CO₂ extraction allows the efficient and high-quality production of:
- Functional oils
- Natural antioxidants
- Flavours and volatile compounds
- Unsaturated fatty acids and triglycerides
- Nutritional and bioactive extracts
Extracts can be obtained from sources such as:
- Seeds: broccoli, lupin, carrot, pomegranate, sesame, blackcurrant, pepper, cumin
- Berries: saw palmetto, raspberry, sea buckthorn
- Nuts: almond, hazelnut, cashew
- Roots: angelica, ginger
- Flowers and/or leaves: chamomile, oregano
Sustainable Extraction Technologies: Add Value and Stand Out
At ALTEX, AINIA’s industrial plant equipped with supercritical CO₂ technology, we offer:
- Natural and precise extraction of high-value, high-concentration compounds from sources such as botanical extracts, essential oils, seed oils and butters
- Ingredient processing, including purification and removal of unwanted residues or impurities
- Microbial load reduction, especially effective with heat-sensitive or oxidation-prone compounds
- Separation and fractionation of bioactive compounds
- Certified industrial processing, with ECO (BIO), COSMOS and GMP certifications. We operate extractors with up to 1000 L capacity, allowing us to meet a wide range of industrial applications and client needs.
