QUALITY CHARACTERISTICS OF CASSIA SIEBERIANA L.SEED OIL A.A.Warra

Oil was extracted from the seed of Cassia sieberiana Lusing soxhlet apparatus. The oil yield was 9.26±0.01% and the colour of the seed oil was dark yellow. The results of the physico-chemical analysis revealed the following; acid value, iodine value, saponification value, peroxide value, relative density and refractive index of 0.35±0.01 mgKOH/g , 135.60 ±0.10 gI2/100g, 235.62 ±0.01 mgKOH/g, 1.8 ±0.10meq H2O2 , 0.8185±0.00 (g/cm3) and 1.4415 ±5.77 respectively indicating the suitability of the seed oil for pharmaceutical and cosmetic applications.


INTRODUCTION
Cassia sieberiana, drumstick tree, is a tree in the Fabaceae family native to Africa. It ranges from 10-20 metres in height and has very bright yellow flowers [1]. In Hausa language it is called "Màrgáá"or" Malgaa" [2] It is a plant ofPharmacognisticimportance from among Nigerian plants [3]. Pharmacognistic studies and standardization of Cassia sieberianaroots has been reported [4].Medicinally itsleaves, root bark was reported to be useful antimalarial [5]. One of the uses of Cassia sieberianaseeds is roasting for beverage [6]. Acaricidal activity of aqueous extract of Cassia sieberianastem bark on Hyalomma larvae using theimmersion technique was reported [7].Oil extraction and production of biodieselfrom Cassiasieberianaseeds using the trans-esterification method was also successfullyreported [8]. This research work was carried out to physico-chemicallyanalyze Cassiasieberianaseed oil and show its potential in pharmaceutical and cosmetic preparations.

Sample Collection and Identification
The Cassia sieberiana L. seed was obtained from the premises of Kebbi State University of Science and Technology, Aliero, Nigeria. The taxanomic identification was authenticated by Dr. Dhramemdra Singh of the Botany unit Biological Sciences Department, Kebbi State University of Science and technology, Aliero in comparison with voucher specimen Voucher Number 71Akept at Herbarium.The dried seeds were crushed into powder using mortar and pestle and were stored in a dried plastic container prior to oil extraction.

2 Oil Extraction Procedure
The hexane extract was obtained by complete extraction using the Soxhlet extractor (GG-17, SHUNIU). The 50 g of each powdered kernel sample was put into a porous thimble and placed in a Soxhlet extractor, using 150 cm 3 of nhexane (with boiling point of 40-60°C) as extracting solvent for 6 hours repeatedly until required quantity was obtained. The oil was obtained after evaporation using Water bath at 7 0 C to remove the excess solvent from the extracted oil. The oil was then stored in refrigerator for subsequent physicochemical analysis.

Percentage Yield
The oil which was recovered by complete distilling of most of the solvent on a heating mantle was transferred to a beaker. The beaker was then placed over water bath for complete evaporation of solvent for about 2 hours and volume of the oil was recorded and expressed as oil content (%) in line with literature report [9].

Determination of Colour
The colour of the oil samples was determined by observation using several independent competent individuals. Oil colour was correlated using colour charts [10].

Determination of Relative Density
This was performed according to literature report [11].The 10ml of the oil was measured in a pre-weighed measuringcylinder. The weight of the cylinder and oil was measured, the weight of the oil was then obtained by subtracting theweight of the cylinder from the weight of the oil and cylinder. The density of the oil was obtained using equation below.
Wo = weight of measuring cylinder, Vo = volume of oil used.

Physico-Chemical Analysis
The physico-chemical analysis of theCassia sieberiana L. seed oil was carried out using the methods reported[12; 13;14].   [19] higher than 0.03±0.01 reported for onion seed oil [20] recommended for soap making and other cosmetic preparations., Iodine value was 135.60 ±0.10 gI2/100g, higher than 84.8 gI2/100g reported for groundnut seed oil [21] and 76.93 ± 0.397 gI2/100g reported for castor bean [22] which is within a rangeof semi-drying oils consisting predominately polyunsaturated fatty acids mainly oleic andlenoliec fatty acids. This class of oils whose iodine value is between 100 -150 possesses theproperty of absorbing oxygen on exposure to the atmosphere; though do not do so sufficiently to qualify them as drying oils. They become thicken and remain sticky but do not form a hard dryfilm. They are used in the production of margarine and soap [ [32]. Increase in refractiveindex values in the triacylglycerols or degree of unsaturation result in increase in chain length of fatty acids [33].

CONCLUSION
Conclusively, the results of the physicochemical analysis of seed oil of CassiasieberianaL. indicated its potential for soap making and other cosmetic industries.