The Acrocomia aculeata is a promising palm tree for biofuel production, but it faces challenges related to propagation, especially due to seed dormancy. This article presents an integrative review, supported by bibliometrics, of the sexual and asexual propagation methods of the species, conducted through searches in Scopus, SciELO, and Web of Science databases. The results indicate that sexual propagation is the predominant approach in the literature, although it faces significant challenges due to seed dormancy, such as the physical resistance to embryo protrusion imposed by the operculum. Asexual propagation demonstrates great potential through micropropagation techniques, which allow obtaining genetically uniform plants in relatively short periods. The non-deep physic dormancy exhibited by the seeds interferes with germination by constraining embryo growth potential and postponing the metabolic reactivation essential for successful germination. Despite the existence of promising methods for overcoming dormancy, additional studies are needed to understand the mechanisms involved in this process. This review maps the scientific literature to highlight areas of proven research success, identify critical gaps and underexplored topics, and indicate how future investigations can support the development of efficient propagation protocols and the establishment of commercial plantations.

Moringa oleifera Lam. is a drought-resistant plant and able to survive in poor soils, obtaining up to three harvests per year. This culture has wide employability in the cosmetics, medicinal, food industry and also as a potential for water purification. Despite its widespread use, there are few studies on its processing. Thus, the objective of this work was to study the behavior during the drying process, at the drying air temperatures of 40 ºC, 55 ºC and 70 ºC, applying mathematical models to the experimental data, thus selecting the best model according to the kinetics curves of drying, as well as evaluating the effect of this phenomenon on the efficiency of mechanical oil extraction. Pre-dried Moringa oleifera Lam. grains from the city of Barreirinhas (MA) were used, the second semester of 2018 and the experiment conducted at the Agricultural Engineering Department of the Federal University of Lavras (MG). Artificial drying was carried out to a constant grain mass, using a mechanical laboratory dryer in a fixed layer with forced convection, at an air speed of 0.33 ms-1, with controlled drying air temperatures of 40 °C, 55 °C, and 70 °C. Non-linear regression analysis was performed using the Quasi-Newton method to adjust 11 mathematical models to experimental data. The oil was extracted using an expeller-type mechanical press. The press yield and efficiency were calculated from the difference in lipid content obtained by the initial chemical extraction of the grain and residual of the pie. The Exponential Equation of Two Terms was the one that best suited the experimental data for all drying air temperatures. The increase in the temperature of the drying air caused greater volumetric contraction of the moringa grains, which affected the oil extraction yield, resulting in lower efficiency of the mechanical press.

Moringa oleifera Lam. is a drought-resistant plant and able to survive in poor soils, obtaining up to three harvests per year. The objective of this work was to study the chemical prospecting of the oil and the bromatological quality of the moringa cake amog different temperatures of drying (40, 55, and 70 ºC) as well as from the oil chemical and mechanical extraction methods. The extracted oils were qualitatively evaluated for acidity, peroxide and iodine levels, as well as the chemical composition of fatty acids by gas chromatography, of samples dried at different drying air temperatures. The pies from mechanical extractions were evaluated for water content, ether extract, crude protein, ash and fibers in neutral detergent. The drying air temperatures of 40, 55, and 70 ºC significantly affected the physical-chemical quality of the oil and the moringa cake, with the best result being the samples from the dry grains at 40 °C. The composition of the main fatty acids was not altered according to the statistical method applied, these being oleic fatty acid (73.60 to 77.07%), erucic (5.65 to 6.67%) and palmitoleic (4.90 to 5.72%). The chemical extraction of oil, although more efficient than the mechanical one, presented higher levels of acidity and peroxide. The content of fibers in neutral detergent and crude protein of the pie decreased significantly for dried grains with drying air temperature above 40 °C.

Este artigo apresenta os resultados de uma visita à Associação AMANU - Educação, Ecologia e Solidariedade, sediada em Jaboticatubas, Minas Gerais, realizada em maio de 2024. Utilizando metodologias de Etnoecologia e Pesquisa-Ação, os objetivos principais foram investigar diferentes usos e saberes locais associados ao extrativismo da macaúba (Acrocomia aculeata), fazer um levantamento sobre as necessidades da comunidade em relação ao desenvolvimento de tecnologia adaptada à agricultura familiar e ao relevo acidentado, e analisar o desenho do arranjo produtivo atual da macaúba na região. A análise dos processos concretos vivenciados pela Associação AMANU e pelas famílias visitadas revela ensinamentos e princípios gerais que podem inspirar outros grupos interessados ou engajados na Agroecologia, como a valorização dos conhecimentos tradicionais, o desenvolvimento de tecnologias adaptadas à realidade local e a promoção da soberania alimentar e da conservação da biodiversidade. A busca por uma mecanização contextualizada, em particular, visa não apenas aumentar a eficiência produtiva, mas também melhorar as condições de trabalho, reduzir o esforço físico e potencializar a agregação de valor aos produtos, contribuindo diretamente para a sustentabilidade social e econômica das comunidades extrativistas.

Aromatic herbs produce essential oils comprising volatile and lipophilic compounds derived from secondary metabolism. These plants must be dried immediately after harvesting under controlled conditions to preserve their chemical profile. Herein, we investigated the drying behavior of lemongrass (Cymbopogon citratus) and white basil (Ocimum basilicum L.) leaves and evaluated the effect of drying air temperature (40 °C, 50 °C, and 60 °C) on the yield and composition of essential oil. The experiments were conducted in a completely randomized design with a 2 × 3 factorial arrangement. Hydrodistillation using a Clevenger apparatus was employed to extract essential oils. The drying data were fitted to nonlinear mathematical models. Increasing temperature decreased drying time and increased drying rate. The Page model was the most suitable for describing the drying kinetics of lemongrass, whereas the Modified Page model was the most suitable for basil. The drying temperature significantly affected essential oil yield, with 40 °C providing the highest yields (2.259% for lemongrass and 2.64% for basil). In basil, 1,8-cineole (14.14%-32.52%) and linalool (27.32%-46.08%) were the major compounds identified, whereas in lemongrass, geranial (51.59%-55.38%) was identified. Temperature also changed oil composition, affecting the relative abundance of key compounds. Overall, the study results indicate a practical trade-off: lower temperatures preserve essential oil yield and chemical integrity; in contrast, higher temperatures enhance drying efficiency at the expense of compositional stability. Our findings will help guide temperature selection based on whether the industrial objective prioritizes drying performance or essential oil quality.