Optimizing refining temperatures to reduce the loss of essential fatty acids and bioactive compounds in tea seed oil

•We reduced the refining temperatures in the processes of tea seed oil.•The losses of bioactive compounds in refined oil significantly reduced.•The undesirable materials could be removed effectively by new refinery method. The traditional refining process for tea seed oil (Camellia oleifera oil) results in a severe loss of natural bioactive compounds and unsaturated fatty acids owing to the high operating temperatures. This study investigated the relationship between refining temperatures and the loss of various fatty acids and bioactive compounds in tea seed oil. It was found that the optimal refining temperatures should be 35°C in the degumming stage, 45°C in the neutralization stage, 85°C in the bleaching stage, 150°C at a pressure of 0.3MPa in the deodorization stage and 7°C in the dewaxing stage. Results from a factory acceptance test showed that the quality of the oil refined using the optimized temperatures was similar to that of oil refined traditionally. Most unsaturated fatty acids and bioactive compounds were retained in oil refined using the optimized method, but were significantly reduced in oil refined traditionally.