Complete saponification and acidulation of natural oil processing byproducts

摘要

The present invention generally provides a process for treating a soapstock. The present invention more particularly provides systems and methods for treating a soapstock to generate free fatty acids and/or fatty acid derivatives, e.g. fatty acid alkyl esters. The present invention more particularly provides systems and methods for realizing the full fatty acid yield of a soapstock by first converting substantially all of the saponifiable material in a soapstock to salts of fatty acids (soaps) and acidulating the soaps to generate free fatty acids and/or fatty acid derivatives, e.g. fatty acid alkyl esters, wherein the soapstock comprises soaps and saponifiable lipids, e.g. glycerides and/or phospholipids, and the generating of free fatty acids and/or fatty acid is achieved without the use of a mineral acid.

主权项

1. A method for generating free fatty acids from a mixed lipid feedstock, the method comprising:
providing the mixed lipid feedstock; combining the mixed lipid feedstock with a base to form a mixture; allowing the mixture to react in a reaction vessel to form a reacted mixture; introducing carbon dioxide into the reacted mixture in the reaction vessel to form a first carbonic acid within the reaction vessel; mixing the first carbonic acid and the reacted mixture within the reaction vessel; allowing the first carbonic acid and reacted mixture to settle within the reaction vessel; and draining a first aqueous layer from the reaction vessel.