Enzymatic modification of cottonseed oil aiming to obtain dietetic triglycerides employing fluidized bed reactor

• Grant number: 16/11980-4
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Effective date (Start): September 01, 2016
• Effective date (End): August 31, 2017
• Field of knowledge: Engineering - Chemical Engineering - Chemical Process Industries
• Principal Investigator: Ariela Veloso de Paula
• Grantee: Núbia Santaella
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Ciências Farmacêuticas (FCFAR). Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP). Campus de Araraquara. Araraquara , SP, Brazil

Abstract

One of the great challenges in the food industry is the modification of oils and fats in order to obtain structured lipids, among them stand out dietary triglycerides, which have important nutraceutical and food applications. Dietetic triglycerides of MLM type containing medium chain fatty acids (M) in the sn-1 and sn-3 positions, long chain fatty acids (L) in the sn-2 position, and can be obtained by enzymatic acidolysis of vegetable oils and medium-chain fatty acids, using 1,3 specific lipases. This project aims to synthesize dietetic triglycerides, MLM type, by enzymatic acidolysis of cottonseed oil with medium chain fatty acid (caprylic, C8) using Lipozyme RM IM (Rhizomucor miehei), in fluidized bed reactor. This oil was selected based on its rich composition in unsaturated fatty acid and add value to a by-product of cotton production. In a first step, the hydrodynamic characterization of the reactor will be held, and the minimum fluidization velocity will be determined in function of the biocatalyst mass. Based on the results, the influence in the synthesis of MLM triglycerides of the residence time and the molar ratio of oil:acid will be evaluated using a 22 factorial planning. Finally, the acidolysis reaction will be conducted under optimum conditions in order to evaluate the operational stability of the immobilized enzyme. The results obtained in this study will allow the selection of the most efficient reaction conditions for obtaining these dietetic triglycerides MLM type on a continuous system, being a promising project in biotechnology area.