S. Sellappan et Cc. Akoh, Enzymatic acidolysis of tristearin with lauric and oleic acids to produce coating lipids, J AM OIL CH, 77(11), 2000, pp. 1127-1133
Triacylglycerols with potential for coating application were prepared by ac
idolysis of tristearin with lauric and oleic acids using Lipozyme 1M60 lipa
se in n-hexane. The effects of reaction parameters such as time, temperatur
e, substrate mole ratio, water content, enzyme load, and enzyme reuse were
studied. Five-gram scale synthesis was carried out to obtain the melting pr
ofile of products by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). An acceptable
melting profile was obtained for the product obtained with a 1:4:1 (triste
arin/lauric acid/oleic acid) mole ratio of reactants. The DSC melting peak
for this product was 31.4 degreesC. Synthesis of 1200 g of this product was
carried out at a 1:4:1 substrate ratio in a stirred tank batch reactor und
er optimal conditions. The reaction product, purified by short-path distill
ation, was coated onto crackers and studied for its moisture inhibition abi
lity, under water vapor-saturated atmosphere, in a desiccator over differen
t time intervals. The effectiveness of the synthesized lipid as a coating m
aterial was compared against uncoated crackers as a control and with cocoa
butter-coated crackers. The synthesized lipid was better in preventing mois
ture absorption than cocoa butter.