Methods for evaluating chaga extraction effectiveness based on its porosity change

The article presents the results of experimental studies of changes in chaga physical parameters in course of aqueous extraction and a method for evaluating the efficiency of target components extraction based on changes in porosity for different zones of the fungus. Cutting-edge techniques and experimental plants were used in the research to determine the physical parameters of solid porous bodies: weight, volume, apparent volume, average density, apparent density, and porosity. It was found that four of the six physical parameters studied, i.e. weight, volume of the sample, apparent volume and average density had a negative change and two, namely apparent density and porosity, had a positive change. The percolation method was used to determine the quantitative yield of extractive substances for various zones of chaga. The largest values of parameter changes are typical for samples from the outer zone (sclerotium) and the fruit body, the smallest - for a sample from the inner layer of the chaga (the place adjacent to the tree trunk). This confirms the hypothesis of the greatest value of chaga elements related to the sclerotium and fruit body zones. A technique has been developed to determine the efficiency of the extraction process by the changes in chaga porosity. The dependence of the degree of extraction on changes in porosity for different layers of chaga has been established and mathematically described, which will allow for a comparative analysis of various extraction methods.