Separation of Pectin from Cocoa Pods

Cocoa is one of the plantation commodities which has an important role in the national economy. Cocoa production for 2014 in East Kalimantan reached 8106 tons/year. Cocoa production cannot be separated from the waste produced, namely cocoa shells. In the cocoa pod shell, there is a pectin content of 6-12%. This research aims to obtain pectin with the optimum yield and water content, equivalent weight and methoxyl content in accordance with the standards of the International Pectin Producers Association. The research was carried out using the hydrolysis method with the different concentration of the HCl solvent, namely 0.065N; 0.075N; 0.1N; 0.2N and 0.3N. 60g of ground dry cocoa shells were hydrolyzed with 750mL of HCl solvent for 2h at an operating temperature of 95°C. The hydrolysis results were added with 96% ethanol in a ratio of 1:1.5 (v/v) until a precipitate was formed, then filtered and washed then dried at 40°C for 8 hours. The optimum pectin yield obtained was 5.1981% at a HCl concentration of 0.1 N with an air content of 9.8452%, an equivalent weight of 1214.9930mg/mmol and a methoxyl content classified as low methoxyl pectin, namely 5.2204%.