Comparison of Oil and Fat Testing in Synthetic Wastewater Between Separatory Funnel Extraction and Soxhlet Extraction

Abstract

          This development routine is an experimental research investigation comparing oil and fat testing results in water using two different extraction methods: the separatory funnel extraction method and the Soxhlet extraction method. The researchers conducted experiments using three replicates of synthetic wastewater samples containing 20 mg/L of concentrated oil. The analysis of oil and fat content was conducted using laboratory protocols specified in the 22^nd edition of the Standard Methods for the Examination of Water and Wastewater, as well as the Water Pollution Testing Methods standard manual published by the Department of Industrial Works. The collected data were subjected to statistical analysis, which included calculating the mean and standard deviation.

          The results indicated that the average oil concentrations in the synthetic wastewater samples were 20.00 ± 0.01 mg/L when using the Soxhlet extraction method and 13.73 ± 0.92 mg/L with the separatory funnel extraction method. The Soxhlet extraction method was found to offer superior quality and accuracy compared to the separatory funnel extraction method. This was evidenced by a relative difference of less than 10% and a recovery rate within the range of 99.0% to 100.5%. Therefore, it should be considered to choose the method of extracting water-soluble oils and fats using Soxhlet in providing services for analyzing the quality of water contaminated with fats.