E. Szukalska, Effect of phospholipid structure on kinetics and chemistry of soybean oil hydrogenation with nickel catalysts, EUR J LIPID, 102(12), 2000, pp. 739-745
Phospholipids (PL) are one of the compounds which poison nickel catalysts d
uring the hydrogenation process. It was affirmed that even trace amounts of
PL (5-10 ppm P) cause a decrease in catalyst activity. Quantities over 50
ppm P almost totally inhibit the reaction. In bleached oils used for hydrog
enation, PL exist as native compounds as well as products of their transfor
mation. In the present work, the effect of native phospholipids, lysophosph
olipids (LPL) and phosphatidic acids (PA) on the kinetics and chemistry of
soybean oil hydrogenation was investigated. It was found that PA were more
toxic to nickel catalysts than LPL and native FL. Fine-grained catalyst was
more active and resistant to the poisoning effect of phospholipids than mo
derate-grained catalyst. No changes in the oil hydrogenation chemistry were
observed in the presence or absence of FL; thus, linoleic and linolenic se
lectivity and specific isomerization did not undergo any change.