JPH06181686A - Fractionation of fats and oils and emulsifier therefor - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Summary] [Structure] The main constituent fatty acid is sucrose fatty acid ester consisting of palmitic acid, and the average degree of substitution of the ester is 4
An emulsifying agent for separating fats and oils, which is mainly composed of sucrose fatty acid polyester of 8 or less. [Effect] Since fine and hard crystals (solid fat) are uniformly generated, the separation of fats and oils can be remarkably promoted.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

FIELD OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to an emulsifying agent for separating fats and oils. More specifically, the present invention relates to an emulsifier that promotes crystallization of specific components of oils and fats in order to efficiently produce fractionated oils and fats that can be used for food.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Edible fats and oils are a mixture mainly composed of various fatty acid glycerides, and are crystallized and fractionated according to their use, and individual components are effectively utilized. In particular, palm oil and the like has a wide range of fatty acid composition and triglyceride composition, and is a so-called semi-solid fat that is semi-solid and semi-liquid at room temperature. A separation process is performed to separate suitable components.

Conventionally, natural fractionation methods, surfactant fractionation methods, solvent fractionation methods and the like have been known as fractionation methods, but each has its advantages and disadvantages. The natural fractionation method is generally called wintering, and is a method in which a completely dissolved oil or fat is gradually cooled and the produced crystal portion is separated from the liquid oil portion by filtration. This method has the advantage that the equipment cost and running cost are low, but if it is attempted to improve the separation accuracy of the liquid oil portion, the amount of liquid oil mixed into the crystal phase will increase, and the separation quality of the crystal portion will deteriorate. This leads to a decrease in the yield of the liquid oil part. Further, a large amount of precipitation of the crystal part causes an increase in viscosity, which makes solid-liquid separation difficult and precise separation difficult. In addition, when filtration separation is performed, the number of days required for filtration is required to be 2 to 3 days, and a slight difference in temperature condition affects the shape and size of precipitated oil and fats, resulting in a decrease in filtration rate. There is a problem that leads to.

In the surfactant fractionation method, the crystallization operation is almost the same as the natural fractionation method, but after the crystallization is completed, an aqueous solution of the surfactant is added to wash out the liquid portion adhering to the crystal surface, and at the same time, crystallize. Part is transferred to an aqueous solution of a surfactant to cause a difference in specific gravity, which is then separated by centrifugation. This method has the advantages of low equipment cost and high separation accuracy, but since sodium dodecyl sulfate is usually used as a surfactant, food hygiene problems remain.

In the solvent fractionation method, when a solution of fats and oils in an organic solvent is cooled, the high melting point component having a low solubility in the solvent and the medium melting point component are successively deposited, so that the crystals grow sufficiently. After this, the crystal part and the liquid part are separated by a filter or the like. This method has advantages such as low viscosity, good operability such as filtration, and processing even if the amount of crystals is large, but the separation equipment is complicated and the equipment cost is high. There is a problem in that it requires heat and explosion-proof equipment to prevent fire.

[0006]

In view of the above circumstances, the inventors of the present invention have made diligent studies on the improvement of the natural fractionation method. As a result, the use of a specific emulsifying agent in fats and oils in the natural fractionation method results in crystallization. Accelerated and uniform formation of fine and hard crystals, shortening the process time, improving operability,
The inventors have found that this leads to an improvement in sorting accuracy and have completed the present invention.

That is, the gist of the present invention is a sucrose fatty acid ester whose main constituent fatty acid is palmitic acid, and the fractionation of fats and oils whose main ingredient is sucrose fatty acid polyester having an average degree of substitution of 4-8. And a method for separating fats and oils, characterized in that a crystalline component of the fats and oils is separated using the emulsifier. Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail.

The sucrose fatty acid polyester used in the present invention requires that the main fatty acid constituting the ester is palmitic acid, and the palmitic acid content in the constituent fatty acids of the sucrose fatty acid ester is 50% by weight or more, It is preferably at least 60% by weight, more preferably at least 70% by weight. If the amount is 50% by weight or less, the desired effect of the present invention cannot be obtained.

The sucrose fatty acid ester in the present invention is
In addition to the specific fatty acid component, the number of ester bonds (degree of substitution) of the fatty acid with respect to sucrose is 4 to 4 on average.
8, in other words, the esterification rate needs to be 50% or more on average. There are eight types of sucrose fatty acid esters, from monoesters to octaesters, depending on the degree of substitution of fatty acid for one molecule of sucrose. Usually, it is present as a mixture of these esters, but in the present invention, those having tri-, tetra-esters and higher partial esters of sucrose as the main components and having an average degree of substitution of 4 or more, particularly tetra-esters or more, are used. Those containing a large amount of partial ester of are preferable.

The amount of sucrose palmitate polyester used as the emulsifying agent for fractionating oils and fats of the present invention is usually 0.01 to 5% by weight, preferably 0.1 to 3% by weight, based on the oils and fats. The fats and oils that are the subject of the present invention include cottonseed oil,
Vegetable oils such as rapeseed oil, soybean oil, corn oil, palm oil, coconut oil, cocoa oil, etc., animal oils and fats such as beef tallow, lard, fish oil, milk fat and the like, and mixtures thereof, and hydrogenation treatment of these oils and fats You can also use the ones. The invention is particularly suitable for fractionating palm oil.

The method of using the emulsifying agent for fractionation of the present invention is to add a desired amount to the target fats and oils, uniformly mix by means such as heating and melting, and then gradually cool as in the usual natural fractionation method. The generated crystal part may be separated from the liquid part. Further, the fractionation emulsifier of the present invention promotes crystallization of fats and oils, fine and hard crystals are uniformly produced, and in a fractionation method in which filtration is performed under pressure, crystal destruction is prevented in a short time and in a liquid phase. It is particularly effective because a solid phase portion with less mixed parts can be obtained. The separated fats and oils can be used for various purposes. For example, the solid fat side is used as a raw material fat such as shortening and chocolate, and the liquid oil side is used as a raw fat and oil such as frying oil and mayonnaise.

[0012]

The present invention will be described in more detail below, but the present invention is not limited to the following examples unless it exceeds the gist. Examples 1 to 9 and Comparative Examples 1 to 7 Various emulsifiers shown in Table 1 were added to 250 g of palm oil,
It was heated and melted at 80 ° C. After that, the sample was transferred to a constant temperature water bath of 50 ° C., the water temperature of the water bath was lowered at a cooling rate of 1 ° C./min while stirring the sample at 30 rpm, and when the water temperature of the water bath reached 15 ° C., it was held for 20 minutes. (Observation of solidified state) After that, using a filter paper having a filter paper diameter of 3 μ, Nutsche suction filtration was performed under a vacuum of 30 mmHg. (Measurement of filtration time) The crystal size of the fixed fat on the obtained filter paper was measured. Moreover, the state in which a pressure of 10 kg / cm ² was applied to the precipitated crystals was observed. The results are shown in Table-2.

The solidified state was visually observed. Uniform refers to a state in which crystals are spread over the entire container,
The non-uniformity means that crystals are concentrated in the stirring blade portion and the outer wall portion of the container. The observation of the crystalline state at the time of pressurization was carried out by microscopic observation (400 times). Dispersion means a state in which crystals do not overlap each other, and agglomeration means that crystals are aggregated and the aggregate length is 20 μm or more.

[0014]

[Table 1]

[0015]

[Table 2]

[0016]

By using the emulsifying agent for fractionating oils and fats of the present invention, fine and hard crystals are uniformly formed, so that the fractionation of oils and fats can be remarkably promoted. The conventional natural fractionation process has been simplified, making it possible to produce useful fats and oils at low cost.

Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. An emulsifying agent for fractionating oils and fats, which comprises a sucrose fatty acid ester whose main constituent fatty acid is palmitic acid, and whose main substitution is sucrose fatty acid polyester having an average degree of substitution of 4-8. 2. A method for fractionating fats and oils, comprising adding the emulsifying agent for fractionation according to claim 1 to fats and oils, stirring and mixing to crystallize a specific component of the fats and oils, and then separating the crystals.