Recovery of Succinic Acid-Rich Fraction from the Juice of Chaenomeles japonica (Thunb.) Lindl. Ex Spach by Ion Exchange Fractionation Resin

Succinic acid (SA) is one of the most demanded and widely used constituents for producing various healthcare and skincare products, biodegradable polymers, and food and feed additives. The present study was undertaken to establish the protocol for selective recovery of SA from a complex matrix of Japanese quince (JQ) (Chaenomeles japonica) fruit using ion-exchange fractionation resin DIAION™ UBK550 with negatively charged functional groups cross-linked with a styrene-divinylbenzene matrix. A second SA purification method was used for data comparison using either Supel™-Select HLB or Strata-X columns packed with a hydrophilic modified sty-rene-based polymer. The analysis of SA accomplished by multiple reaction monitoring (MRM) using triple quadrupole mass selective detection (HPLC-ESI-TQ-MS/MS) revealed the presence of SA in the JQ juice without pretreatment, in the amount of 0.202 mg·100 ml^–1. The use of sty-rene-based polymer Strata-X sorbent for purification of JQ juice led to an increase of 11.0% in the concentration of SA compared with the initial concentration of SA in JQ juice. On the other hand, after purification of JQ juice with Supel™-Select HLB, the concentration of desorbed SA in the eluate fraction was 7.8% lower compared to the initial concentration. The use of ion-exchange fractionation resin DIAION™ UBK550 for purification and concentration of JQ juice ensured up to 152.3 mg of SA in 100 ml^–1 of syrup-like brown substance, which was much (754.4-fold) higher than that observed in JQ juice itself. All three sorbents ensured the complete removal of monoand disaccharides from the juice, as no signs of mono- and disaccharides were detected in the eluate fractions.