LOW TRANS FATTY ACID CONTAINING HYDROGENATED EDIBLE OILS

by Xiao, Haiyi

An investigation of an electrochemical process for hydrogenating edible oils at low temperature and pressure was conducted. This process was able to increase the oleic acid (a monounsaturated fatty acid) content and reduce trans fatty acids in two kinds of oils: soybean oil and vegetable oil. In this process, a Pd/Al2O3 catalyst provided active sites for the hydrogenation reaction between the edible oils and the formate ion. The formate ion was the hydrogen donor in the reaction and could be regenerated within the process at the cathode. Compared with the commercial method, the trans fatty acid formation was reduced because of the low reaction temperatures. The optimal reaction conditions for the electrochemical process used in this study were found. Finally, a mathematical model was developed to describe the kinetics of the hydrogenation process and to predict the fatty acid profile obtained.