Patent ID: 8048462

Claim:
A process for the production of highly enriched fractions of natural compounds from Palm oil or Palm oil derivatives, comprising a first separation step comprising countercurrent multistage separation with supercritical carbon dioxide and/or near critical propane removing the higher volatile over top, yielding a bottom fraction enriched in the natural compounds, and another countercurrent multistage separation conducted on the bottom fraction enriched in the natural compounds, with supercritical carbon dioxide and/or near critical propane removing the target natural compounds over top, thus cleaning it from a bottom fraction of low volatile impurities, and a second step comprising selective adsorption and desorption by directly adsorbing the top fraction of the target natural compounds from the countercurrent separation containing the supercritical carbon dioxide and/or near critical propane on an adsorbent, and subsequently eluting the mixture from the adsorbent by the same or an other supercritical carbon dioxide and/or near critical propane and collecting different fractions.