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US 6,635,774 B2Granted
Preparation of sterol and stanol-esters
AssigneeMcNeil-PPC, Inc.
InventorsAllan Roden, James L. Williams, Ruey Bruce, Frank Detrano, Marie H. Boyer
Life of this patent
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Abstract
The present invention provides a method for the direct esterification of stanols and sterols with fatty acids to form stanol/sterol-esters. The method provides a synthetic route that is amenable to large scale production of the esters in high yields. A preferred embodiment employs a food grade process free of organic solvents or mineral acids, does not produce or use non-food grade products and is substantially free of the use of a catalyst.
Claims22
A method for producing stanol/sterol-esters comprising providing a stanol/sterol of the formula
- providing less than about 10% molar excess of a C46-C20 acid relative to the sterol/stanol, admixing and heating said stanol/sterol and acid at a temperature of from about 150 to about 260° C., free of catalyst and added solvents, resulting in the production of the substantially discrete corresponding food grade stanol/sterol ester of the formula,
- wherein R1 is a carbon chain having a length of from about from C6 to C20;
- and R2 is a carbon chain having a length of from C3 to C15.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.