About this Research Topic

Background

Natural extractions have been around human civilization perhaps even longer than the written word, but it is easy to believe that maceration, infusion, distillation, etc., have been performed on vegetative tissues as ancient processes for their health benefits. By the same token, the development of extraction has never before evolved as fast as it has in recent years. The overall impact of industrial extraction companies on the environment is not easy to calculate, although it is known that at least half of the energetic toll of the whole process is required in the extraction phase, without considering the huge amount of effluents with a diverse degree of toxicity that streams out from the factories.

Due to the exponential growth of interest in natural extracts and their collateral effects, researchers have been working on different mechanisms to cope with and improve extraction processes with different approaches and perspectives. Our main interest for this Research Topic is to gather updated information and keep the conversation going within the research community which works day by day to develop new techniques for extraction optimization processes. With this in mind, we would like to invite submissions dealing with the consideration of the following points:
• Propose alternative waste recovery processes aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
• Recovery of rich bioactive compounds extracts through green extraction technologies
• Mathematical models and prediction algorithms

Currently, improvements from different research fields and perspectives are being considered with regard to the extraction of bioactive molecules. We are interested in gathering together all the related advances in the matter of optimizations of extraction technologies for the recovery of phytochemicals (natural ingredients). For instance, employing advanced technologies or improving current ones, reducing the energetic expenditure and/or effluents in the extraction processes, improving current methodologies via experimental design or in silico through the use of algorithms (such as Response Surface Methodologies, Artificial Neural Networks, etc.), alternative ways to recover bioactive molecules such a plant milking or other type of nondestructive recovery process. All this in regard to maximizing either single or group-targeted compounds, maximizing recovery yields, and minimizing waste of plant materials, energy, or other industrial inputs, with or without the use of in silico model predictors.

Keywords: Bioactive compounds, Bioaccesibility, Green extraction technologies, By-products, Exploratory data analysis

Important note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.

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