Comparative analysis of physico-chemical properties and fatty acid composition of linseed (Linum usitatissimum L.) oils of Indian accessions

Abstract

The aim of the current study was to investigate the variation in oil content, fatty acid composition, and physicochemical characteristics of different accessions of linseed oil (Linum usitatissimum L.). Significant variations in fatty acid composition, oil content and physico-chemical properties were observed in linseed accessions, among them, unsaturated and saturated fatty acid compositions were ranged from 79.23-86.66% to 12.61-19.99%, respectively, in total fatty acid compositions. The highest content of alpha-linolenic acid (ALA) was found to be major in BHU-A (53.39%) accession followed by BHU-B (53.14%) accessions, whereas the lowest one was found in the accession IC 564631 (38.07%). The current investigation found varying results for the physico-chemical characteristics of linseed oil, such as Iodine value (173.39-178.83 g Iodine/100 g), acid value (2.10-3.04 mg KOH/g), saponification value (192.16-193.49 mg KOH/g), peroxide value (1.52-2.12 meq/Kg), refractive index (1.471-1.472 RI at 40C), and viscosity (23.37-27.95 at 40C (cSt)). The findings of our current investigation revealed that linseed oil is a valuable source of ALA which could be potential applications in the food and pharmaceutical industries. Therefore, comparative and characterization analysis of different linseed accessions aids in selecting a good quality linseed oil and provides new breeding resources for linseed accessions.