Expanding the panel of oleochemicals by altering the fatty acid hydrocarbon backbone

Physico-chemistry of Processes and Bioenergy Laboratory, Agrifood Systems Programme, CIRAD-AMIS, 34398 Montpellier cedex 5, France

^* daniel.pioch@cirad.fr

Abstract

While industrial oleochemistry is able to transform the carboxylic group of natural fatty acids, the fatty chain remains generally unchanged. This paper relates several attemps made at Cirad to propose alternatives through reactions performed under industrialy affordable conditions: normal or soft cracking, acylation of aromatic rings by a fatty acid, condensation of fatty acids to symetrical ketones or methyl ketones and subsequent derivatization\; theses processes share the use of cheap heterogeneous catalysts, reduced level of by-products among other “green advantages”.