Process for producing lower alcohol esters of fatty acids
First Claim
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1. A process for producing lower alcohol esters of fatty acids from an unrefined fat containing impurities including free fatty acids, polypeptides and phospholipids, which comprises the steps of:
- (1) reacting the free fatty acids of said unrefined fat with a lower alcohol, in the presence of an acid catalyst, to esterify said free fatty acids, the amount of said lower alcohol present in the reaction mixture at the end of the esterification reaction being an amount greater than the amount of said lower alcohol that can be dissolved in said fat whereby, at the end of the esterification reaction, the reaction mixture contains a fat phase and a lower alcohol phase, said lower alcohol phase containing impurities dissolved therein;
(2) then separating said reaction mixture into a fat layer and a lower alcohol layer, removing said lower alcohol layer and thereby obtaining refined fat;
(3) then adding a lower alcohol and an alkali catalyst to said refined fat and effecting an interesterification reaction to form lower alcohol esters of the fatty acids in said refined fat, and then recovering said lower alcohol esters.
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Abstract
Lower alcohol esters of fatty acids are produced by esterifying free fatty acids of unrefined fats with a lower alcohol in an amount larger than its solubility in the fats in the presence an acid catalyst; separating the product mixture into the fat layer and the lower alcohol layer, so that the latter may be removed out; and then effecting the interesterification reaction between the resulting, refined fats and a lower alcohol with an alkali catalyst.
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13 Claims
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1. A process for producing lower alcohol esters of fatty acids from an unrefined fat containing impurities including free fatty acids, polypeptides and phospholipids, which comprises the steps of:
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(1) reacting the free fatty acids of said unrefined fat with a lower alcohol, in the presence of an acid catalyst, to esterify said free fatty acids, the amount of said lower alcohol present in the reaction mixture at the end of the esterification reaction being an amount greater than the amount of said lower alcohol that can be dissolved in said fat whereby, at the end of the esterification reaction, the reaction mixture contains a fat phase and a lower alcohol phase, said lower alcohol phase containing impurities dissolved therein; (2) then separating said reaction mixture into a fat layer and a lower alcohol layer, removing said lower alcohol layer and thereby obtaining refined fat; (3) then adding a lower alcohol and an alkali catalyst to said refined fat and effecting an interesterification reaction to form lower alcohol esters of the fatty acids in said refined fat, and then recovering said lower alcohol esters. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13)
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