Ultrasound-Assisted Extraction of Carotenoids from Carrot Pomace: Process Optimization and Application Potential

Carrots, scientifically referred to as <i>Daucus carota</i> L., are widely recognized as one of the most consumed vegetables, frequently utilized in culinary applications and juice manufacturing, both commercially and domestically. This results in significant amounts of waste, primarily from the pomace. Carrot pomace represents a promising low-cost raw material for the production of value-added ingredients for the food and feed industries. The extraction of total carotenoids (TC) and the evaluation of antioxidant activity (AA) were optimized in this study by employing environmentally friendly methods, including ultrasonication. The Central Composite Design (CCD) was utilized in order to establish a response surface approach for the purpose of evaluating the impacts of extraction duration, temperature, and the ratio of material to solvent on the recovery of TC and AA. Under optimal conditions, the TC content was 38.20 mg/g of dry weight, with an antioxidant capacity of 1522.02 μmol TE/g DW, as determined by the ABTS assay. According to the findings, the optimal parameters for extraction were a temperature of 58.9 °C, a solvent mixture ratio of 20.35 mL/g, and a duration of 51 min. The proposed ultrasound-assisted process provides a sustainable and scalable approach for carrot pomace valorization, contributing to the development of circular and resource-efficient agro-industrial processing.