Optimization of Phytosterols Recovery from Soybean Oil Deodorizer Distillate

Abstract

AbstractA large amount of phytosterols in the bound form remains in the waste residue during the traditional process of recovering tocopherols and sterols from soybean oil deodorizer distillate (SODD). In order to avoid the loss of natural resources, we developed a process to recover the maximum amount of phytosterols from SODD. The process includes saponification, methyl esterification, and crystallization. The purpose of saponification and methyl esterification were to decompose the bound phytosterols and to esterify the fatty acids, respectively. The yield of sterols was dependent on saponification and solvent crystallization. The conditions of saponification and solvent crystallization were optimized by single‐factor tests and response surface methodology, respectively. The sterol yield obtained under the optimized conditions was 6.64%. This value is much greater than 4.43% obtained by the traditional industrial process. The purity of the recovered sterols was 94.7%.