The extraction of soluble material from bacuri shells has been studied. The effects of pressure, temperature, particle size, static period and flow time were investigated for extraction with liquid carbon dioxide (LCO2). The yield and the composition of the extracts obtained with LCO2 were compared with those for extracts obtained with other techniques, such as LCO2 plus ethanol (LCO2-EtOH), supercritical CO2 (SCO2), steam distillation (SD), cold ethanol (C-EtOH), and Soxhlet extraction with ethanol (EtOH-So). The LCO2 and LCO2-EtOH extractions were performed at pressures of 63-70 bar, and temperatures of 16-21 degrees C. The constituents isolated from the bacuri shell extracts were predominantly free fatty acids: palmitic, oleic, linoleic, alpha-linolenic, and stearic acids. In addition to these fatty acids, the LCO2-EtOH extracts contained caprylic and myristic acids, alcohols (linalool and 3,7-dimethyl oct-1-en-3,7-diol), and the phenol ether eugenol. The SCO2 extraction was performed at 200 bar and 50 degrees C. The SCO2 extract had a composition similar to the LCO2 extract, but the alpha-linolenic acid was not present, although hydrocarbons such as beta-bisabolene, and alcohols such as 3,7-dimethyl-1-octen-3,7-diol, linalool, and alpha-terpineol were identified. In the extract obtained by SD, only hydrocarbons (methyl benzene and 2-methyl heptane), alcohols (linalool and alpha-terpineol), and oxides (cis-linalool oxide and trans-linalool oxide) were identified. In the C-EtOH and EtOH-So extracts only trimethyl citrate was identified. (C) 1997 Elsevier Science B.V.114167191102