To investigate the effects of co-solvents on the morphology of nano-scale zein materials, zein solutions were electrospun with different co-solvent ratios of EtOH/H2O. Different zein solution concentrations were used to study the effects of the zein content on the electrospun materials. The resulting electrospun materials were all characterized using field-emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The diameters of the electrospun nanoparticles and nanofibers were found to increase when increasing the EtOH ratio at certain zein concentrations. Furthermore, increasing the zein content changed the morphology of the electrospun materials from nanoparticles to nanofibers.

A supercritical fluid extraction was performed for the extraction of phenolics from grape seeds which up to now have been discarded. The optimum condition for extraction process was predicted through response surface methodology using central composit experimental design. The extraction amount of grape seed phenolics was increased by increasing extraction temperature, pressure, and concentration of co-solvent (ethanol). The optimum extraction conditions were 84.83C, 51.50MPa and 1.27% ethanol. The yield of phenolics using SFE was higher with 3 folds than ethanol and 4 folds than hexane but less than 80% methanol. In the respects of food poisoning, the approved solvents were restricted to ethanol and hexane. So, SFE for extraction of phenolics could be powerful alternative method for solvent extraction.