Conditions of Monoglyceride Production by Using Lipase in a Triglyceride Glycerol System

Authors: Abdurrahman ASLAN, Mahmut GENÇ

Abstract: The production of monoglycerides is attempted by esterfication of glycerol with fatty acids produced by enzymatic hydrolysis of triglycerides. Lipase of Candida cylindrecea was used because of its nonspecifcity and high hydrolysis activity, and soybean oil was chosen as an appropriate substrate for Candida cylindrecea. Optimum working conditions of Candida cylindrecea lipase with soybean oil substrate were determined, and at these optimum conditions the effects of water, isooctane, and hexane for the synthesis of the monoglycerides were studied. Because of decreasing of water in the reaction medium, lipase enzyme begins to catalyse synthesis reactions. The products of this reactions are triglycerides at very low content (6% water). At the intermediate water content (9-12 %) the reaction products are mono-and diglycerides. In the case of using organic solvent, this reaction occurs in a reverse way. Isooctane was found to be more suitable than hexane for the synthesis of monoglycerides in our research. The amount of monoglycerdie in the mediums, including water, occured at 10-30 %; in the mediums including isooctane it occurred at 15-24 %; and in the mediums including hexane, at 3-17 %.

Keywords: Lipase, Ester synthesis, organic solvents.