Method of preparing fatty acid alkyl esters from waste or recycled fatty acid stock
AssigneeArcher Daniels Midland Company
InventorsDouglas F. Geier, Ahmad K. Hilaly, John G. Soper
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Abstract
The present invention is directed to a method or preparing fatty acid alkyl esters from fatty acids contained in co-product streams, or waste or recycled fatty acid stock. The present method utilizes an acidic resin to convert the fatty acid stock into esters. The present method encompasses the use of reactive simulated moving bed chromatography, wherein above about 95 percent of the fatty acid stock is converted to fatty acid alkyl esters. The present method has been optimized to separate the ester product from the raffinate stream formed during the chromatographic process, thereby improving the yield of the esterification and preventing acid hydrolysis of the ester.
Claims38
A method of preparing a fatty acid (C1-5) alkyl ester composition comprising:
- contacting a (C1-5) alkyl alcohol with solution of acid to obtain an acidified (C1-5) alkyl alcohol solution;
- and,
- combining a fatty acid composition with the acidified (C1-5) alkyl alcohol solution in the presence of an acidic ion exchange resin,
- wherein the fatty acid composition is selected from the group consisting of acid oil, acidulated soapstock, free fatty acids, fatty acid co-product, and combinations of any thereof.
A method of preparing a fatty acid methyl ester composition comprising:
- adding a solution of acid to a (C1-5) alkyl alcohol to obtain an acidified alcohol;
- contacting a fatty acid composition with a cation exchange resin, thus reducing a sodium content of the fatty acid composition, and producing an ion exchange pre-treated fatty acid composition;
- passing the acidified alcohol into a solvent regeneration zone of a reactive simulated moving bed chromatography apparatus containing an acidic ion exchange resin, thus contacting the acidified alcohol with the acidic ion exchange resin;
- contacting the ion exchange pre-treated fatty acid composition with the acidified alcohol and the acidic ion exchange resin in the reactive simulated moving bed chromatography apparatus by passing the ion exchange pre-treated fatty acid composition into a reaction zone of the reactive simulated moving bed chromatography apparatus;
- separating a fatty acid methyl ester composition reaction product from a reaction by-product within the reactive simulated moving bed chromatography apparatus;
- and,
- eluting the fatty acid methyl ester composition from the reaction zone of the reactive simulated moving bed chromatography apparatus.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.