Effects of Extraction Parameters on Total Flavonoid Content and Antioxidant Activity of Cyperus rotundus

This study aims to evaluate the factors affecting total flavonoid content (TFC) and antioxidant activity (AA) extracted from Cyperus rotundus. The factors under investigation include extraction time (2 and 5 hours), solvent percent (70 and 80%), solvent type (methanol and ethanol), temperature (50 and 80℃) and agitation (0 and 100 rpm). The factors were analyzed using Design-Expert software through a two-level factorial analysis. The results show that temperature and agitation contributed the most to TFC and AA concentration respectively. The best conditions for the phytochemical analysis were obtained at 5 hours extraction time, 85% solvent, methanol as solvent, 80℃ temperature and with agitation, with the concentrations of TFC at 0.171 mg/ml and AA at 6.331 nmol/μl. The findings concerning the most influential factors in phytochemical extractions are beneficial for scaling up yields. Process parameters can be tailored during extraction to obtain maximum yields as desired. The results suggest that the design of experiments is helpful in improving the TFC and AA production by considering all the interactions of variables involved.