Sustainable optimization of microwave‐assisted extraction of dihydromyricetin from <i>Ampelopsis cantoniensis</i> : A life cycle assessment approach

Abstract Microwave‐assisted extraction (MAE) was optimized for the efficient recovery of dihydromyricetin (DHM) from Ampelopsis cantoniensis and its environmental performance was evaluated through a gate‐to‐gate life cycle assessment (LCA). A Taguchi L9 design investigated the effects of ethanol concentration, extraction time, and microwave power, identifying 60% ethanol, 15 min, and 490 W as the optimal conditions, yielding 24.9% DHM—one of the highest reported for Ampelopsis species. Analysis of variance showed that microwave power contributed most strongly to yield variation, followed by extraction time and solvent polarity. To contextualize process sustainability, MAE was compared with ultrasound‐assisted extraction (UAE) using ReCiPe Midpoint (H) 2016. MAE reduced climate‐change impact and fossil‐resource depletion by 43% and 46%, respectively, mainly due to substantially lower electricity demand. The findings agree with previously published LCAs of green extraction processes and confirm that energy use and solvent management are the dominant factors governing environmental burdens. Overall, the integration of process optimization with LCA provides a comprehensive framework for developing environmentally efficient DHM extraction processes and highlights the potential of MAE as a scalable green‐extraction technology.