Development of the protocol for purification of artemisinin based on combination of commercial and computationally designed adsorbents.

A polymeric adsorbent for extraction of the antimalarial drug artemisinin from Artemisia annua L. was computationally designed. This polymer demonstrated a high capacity for artemisinin (120 mg g(-1) ), quantitative recovery (87%) and was found to be an effective material for purification of artemisinin from complex plant matrix.

Comparative assessment of technologies for extraction of artemisinin.

This paper describes results of a multiobjective comparative assessment of several established and emerging technologies for extraction of a natural antimalarial substance, artemisinin. Extractions by hexane, supercritical carbon dioxide, hydrofluorocarbon HFC-134a, ionic liquids, and ethanol were considered. Hexane extraction is an established technology and appears to be the most cost-effective.