Separation of saturated and unsaturated acids from rice bran oil

Abstract

Rice bran oil, a by‐product of rice milling, is an excellent source of a variety of fatty acids. Saponification yielded C16 saturated and C18 unsaturated acids. Saturated and unsaturated acids were separated by solvent crystallization. Hexane and methanol were both investigated as solvents. Gas‐liquid chromatography and iodine value showed that hexane was the more effective crystallization solvent at a solvent/oil ratio of three and crystallization temperature of 5°C. The percent yield and purity of 88.8% and 91% unsaturated acids, respectively, and of 65% and 59% saturated acids were obtained. A process description is proposed for an integrated process.