Food Lipids: Chemistry, Nutrition, and Biotechnology

property encouraged us to look for novel functional effects. Since the sn-2 position
contained only C18:x fatty acids, where x = 1, 2, or 3, selective hydrogenation would
allow us to vary the SFI profiles of the resulting fats in a significant manner. Prior
to commercializing a specific product, we were able to study a variety of plant oils
that had increasing levels of the C12/C14 substitution, and to examine the effects of
hydrogenation on the resultant SFI curves of the final fats. These data are shown in
Figure 8.
The slope of the SFI curve clearly becomes steeper as the levels of C12 increase.
It is also apparent that the tailing of the curve toward the higher melting end
(the so-called waxy portion of the curve) is minimized as the C12 content increases.
If we examine a specific laurate canola having approximately 38% C12 content, and
vary the degree of hydrogenation, (i.e., vary the content of C18:0 vs. the C18unsaturates
that occupy the sn-2 position), we find the effects on the SFI curves
illustrated in Figure 9.
As a reference, Figure 9 also provides the SFI for palm kernel stearine. The
solids profile is bracketed by two laurate canola products: one with an IV of 17 and
one with an IV of 37. Thus we knew that we could effectively match the solids
profile, at least in the melting range around body temperature, that most manufacturers
required for their products. The next most important piece of information for
Figure 8 Solid fat index (SFI) of laurate canola as a function of C12 content (wt %):
squares, 30/32%; diamonds, 36%; circles, 40%. All values for laurate canola hydrogenated to
an iodine value (IV) of 37.
Copyright 2002 by Marcel Dekker, Inc. All Rights Reserved.