THE JOURNAL OF T H E A M E R I C A N OIL CHEMISTS' SOCIETY, MARCtI,
53. (a) ~[cBain, J. W., Elford, W. ft., a n d Void, R. D., ,I. Soc. Chem.
Ind., 59, 243 ( 1 9 3 0 ) ; (b) J~'erguson, R. /~I., a n d Richardson, A. S.,
24, 1329 ( 1 9 3 2 ) ; to) Vold, R. D., a n d l~orguson, R. /-I., J. Am. Chem.
Soc., 60, 2066 ( 1 9 3 8 ) .
54. lYIaclennan, K., J. Soc. Chem. Ind., 4Z, 393T ( 1 9 2 3 ) .
55. McBain, J. W., Gardiner, K., a n d Vold, R. D., Ind. E n g . Chem.,
36, 808 ( 1 9 4 4 ) ; McBain, J~ W., T h o r b u r n , R. C., a n d McGee, C. G.,
Oil a n d Soap 21, 227 ( 1 9 4 4 ) .
Continuous Fat Splitting Plants Using the
Colgate-Emery Process
H. L. BARNEBEY, Blaw-Knox Company, Pittsburgh, Pa., and A. C. BROWN,
Emery Industries, Inc., Cincinnati, Ohio
CONTINUOUS high t e m p e r a t u r e fat splitting
A process, employing countercurrent reaction in a
pressure tower with internal heat exchange, has
been developed and carried through pilot plant in-
vestigation to successful commercial operation. This
method, known as the Colgate-Emery F a t Splitting
Process, gives splitting effcieneies of about 981%,
producing acids which can generally be bleached to
a color equal to or better than that of the original
fat. Because of savings in steam, since no catalyst is
needed, the new process shows considerable economy
over the old Twitchell method.
The earliest attempts to split fats were in soap
making, where the f a t t y acids appear as sodium or
potassimn soaps and the glycerine is either left in
the soap or is separated by salting-out. F a t t y acids
are readily made from soap b y acidulation, but tile
overall process is indirect and costly in chemicals.
Chevreul, in 1813, discovered that fat is a regular
chemical compound of glycerine and one, two, or
three f a t t y acids. Tie also discovered that fat can be
separated into these parts by causing it to unite with
water. In 1853 Tilghman (1) ttiscovcred that the
reaction of fat and water, to fomn f a t t y acids anti
glycerine, can be carried out b y mixing the fat with
water and then subjecting tile mixture to a high de-
gree of heat while the pressure is nmintained suffi-
ciently high to prevent vaporization of the water.
This inventor was in advance of his time, as materials
of construction and techniques of operation for the
required high temperature and high pressure condi-
tions were then unknown. Twitchell, in 1890, took a
forward stride when he devised a relatively simple
method for producing f a t t y acids and glycerine di-
rectly from fats. This is an atmospheric pressure boil-
ing method employing a reagent or catalyst to speed
np the hydrolysis. Twitehell's method is widely used
and will not be replaced entirely for m a n y years be-
cause it is still a good process for certain types of
splitting. Batch autoclave splitting at 100 to 150 psi
with lime, magnesia, or zinc catalyst, has been widely
used, especially in Europe, while the batch process at
around 400 psi without catalyst has found limited
popularity. Continuous eountereurrent high tempera-
ture splitting, as carried out by Procter and Gamble
(2, 3) and more recently in novel form b y Colgate-
Palmolive-Peet and E m e r y Industries (4, 5) consti-
tutes a marked improvement over Twitehell and is
* Presented at the Twenty :First A n n u a l Meeting" of the Ameriearl Oil
Chenlists' Society at the E d g e w a t e r Beach I-Iotel, Chicago, Illinois, Oct.
22, 1947.
1948 95
56. Warwieke, J., TextiIe Colorist, 61, 315-7, 378 ( 1 9 3 9 ) ; Soap a~d
S a n i t a r y Chemicals 15, 58 (August, 1 9 3 9 ) .
57. Smith, E. L., Chem. a n d l n d . , 58, 87 ( 1 9 3 9 ) .
58. Booth. J. H. W., Chem. a n d Ind., 56, 1120 ( 1 9 3 7 ) .
59. M:errill, R. C., a n d Getty, R., J. P h y s . a n d Colloid Chem., ,52,
167 ( 1 9 4 8 ) .
60. Merrill, R. C., u n p u b l i s h e d data.
61. Edeler, A., Ind. E n g . Chenl., 17, 196 ( 1 9 2 5 ) .
finding wide immediate acceptance, p a r t i c u l a r l y for
large scale operation. In the Colgate-Emery Process
fat and water react e o u n t e r e u r r e n t l y in a column at
about 500 degrees F a h r e n h e i t and about 725 psi. H e a t
exchange between f a t t y acid and water takes place in
the top portion of the column and between fat and
sweet water in the bottom part.
The f a t t y acid i n d u s t r y originated early in the last
century and first produced stearie acid for candles.
The present day stearic and oleic acid industry, based
primarily on animal fats, has developed from this
primitive origin and now produces materials which
find their way into a wide variety of uses. Moreover
the fiehl for f a t t y acid from other sources such as
vegetable oils and hydrogenated oils is steadily ex-
pan(ling. Because of the advantages of eountercur-
rent fat Sl:)litting as a step in soap making, indications
are that f u t u r e expansion of the soap i n d u s t r y will
eontimle in this direction.
l)ata on hydrolysis of m a n y fats ill a pilot counter-
current splitting tllant built b y Colgate-Palmolive-
Peet have been published by Allen and coworkers
(6). One of the present authors proposed an improve-
ment of ttlc original process consisting of tile addition
of internal heat exchange (5), of whic.h the equipment
details were reported in the last reference. A n u m b e r
of runs were made in the modified unit, and sufficient
data were obtained to design a commercial plant.
The selection of the optinnnn temperature-pressure
operating range called for a careful analysis of many
factors. The higher the temperature (and therefore
tile pressure) the faster the reaction rate. Tile higher
the temperature, the greater the solubility of water
in fat, which is desirable until tile amount becomes
so great that the amount of water in the column cuts
down on the tower capacity. The higher the pressure,
the greater the cost of equipment per unit of vohlme
b u t with increased reaction rate the volume of the
splitting zone cau be smaller. I f the t e m p e r a t u r e is
too high, it nlay have a deleterious effect on certain
fats and may in fact make counterflow impossible
b y causing complete miscibility. A t e m p e r a t u r e of
a r o u n d 500~ was selected as a practical compromise,
and a maximum operating pressure of 725 lbs. was
chosen to provide a suitable excess to prevent boiling
(vapor pressure of water at 500~ is 669 psi).
The first commercial plant, having a design capac-
ity of 3,000 lbs. of feed per hour, intended primarily
for low-grade fats, was built at Cincinnati, Ohio, b y
E m e r y Industries and has been in operation since
96 TI-tE JOURNAL OF TItE AS~ERICAN OIL CtlEMISTS' SOCIETY, MARCH, 1948

....... i '~t~-'~ ......... ~. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ~---~ -! ..... i

F,T~s',o,~ ! .... ~......... i i i .A,. i
i ' I I : ', : SWEET WATER; J ; I
! ~ ' ; : FLASH TANKL~ i :

{ IS~TTL,NOT..~l i SETTL,NG "rA~ L .. J

~:y ---

HIGH PRESSURE HIGH PRESSURE FAT

FAT PUMP WATER PUMP SPLITTING
COLUMN

Fro. 1. The operation of the Colg~tc-Emery Process is shown by this simpliiied flow sheet.

April, 1947. The second commercial unit, having a temperature. The f a t t y acid passes to a flash tank
capacity of 5,000 pounds per hour, is now being built where the temperature is dropped by evaporating
by Blaw-Knox for Swift and Company at IIammond, p a r t or all of the water which it carries and then to a
Indiana. It is expected that this plant will go into settling tank which removes the remainder of the
operation within the next few months. The commer- water. The settling tank serves also as a surge tank
cial operation of this splitting process is shown on the for recycling the product in starting. F r o m there it
flow sheet and is described below (Fig. 1). goes to heated f a t t y acid storage tanks.
The fat is pumped from tank cars, storage, or puri- The sweet water goes to a flash tank and then to a
fication into alternate feed tanks. F r o m these it is settling tank where small amounts of fat and dirt are
charged into the bottom of the splitting column by a removed b y skimming. The sweet water is now ready,
high pressure plunger type feed pump. I t enters after a light lime treatment, to be sent to the glycer-
through a sparge ring which breaks the fat into small ine concentrator. There is no severe scaling of the
droplets and, as it becomes heated, it rises through tubes with calcium sulfate as is the case with Twitchell
the sweet water accumulating section where its tem- split sweet water. F o r the same reason the finished
p e r a t u r e is increased b y direct contact with the sweet glycerine has an exceptionally low ash content.
water. A f t e r passing through the fat-water interface, U n t r e a t e d Cincinnati water is used in the E m e r y
the fat is f u r t h e r heated b y direct sparged steam to plant as process water. If color is of extreme impor-
about 500 degrees Fahrenheit. Hydrolysis takes place tance, as in the case of high quality soaps, it m a y be
as the f a t (the continuous phase) passes u p w a r d advantageous to de-aerate the water.
through the tower. The column is heavily insulated High pressure steam, at 800 psi, is supplied by a
to minimize heat loss. The small amount of heat steam generator or a steam compressor. In the Em-
needed to maintain the contents at the splitting tem- ery plant steam is supplied b y a small high pressure
p e r a t u r e may be supplied either b y direct high pres- boiler, using condensate from the steam chests of the
sure steam admitted to She central portion of the glycerine concentrators as feed water. T r e a t e d city
tower, or b y external electric strip heaters. water would also be suitable. I f there is already
Process water is withdrawn from its tank and is available a steam supply at a pressure lower than 800
charged into the top of the splitting tower through psi, it can be boosted to the required pressure b y a
a sparge ring b y a high-pressure plunger-type pump. steam compressor. I t is particularly advantageous to
The water is heated b y direct contact with the f a t t y use this system when steam is being produced in the
acid in the internal t r a y 4 y p e heat exchanger and is main plant boiler house at 300 to 400 psi.
then re-dispersed b y a distributor plate. The addi- P l a n t experience has shown that almost any type
tional heat required to bring the water to 500 degrees of f a t that is free of Suspended matter, including still
F a h r e n h e i t is supplied b y direct steam. The water, residues, ~egetable 0il loots, etc., can be handled in
in the f o r m of fine droplets, falls through the column the equipment. Lowest grade fats are advantageously
of f a t t y acid and fat and ~he sweet water is accumu- given an acid boil prior to splitting, b u t this is not a
lated at the bottom of. the tower prior to discharge critical requirement as in Twitehell splitting because
b y an automatic interface controller. in the present process impurities do not reduce the
The f a t t y acid is discharged from the top of the rate of hydrolysis. Where color is of extreme impor-
tower through a back-pressure control valve which tance, it may be desirable to de-aerate the fat before
maintains the column at working pressure. The col- charging it into the column.
umn is completely filled with liquids and vaporization The f a t t y acids can be used as produced for m a n y
of water is prevented b y maintaining the pressure in types of products because of their light color and
excess of the vapor pressure of water at the operating high degree of split. I f high grade fats are used to
 THE JOURNAL OF TI-IE AMERICAN 01L CHEMIST~'

quirements are lncone!

T y p e 316 test samples
sion tests, b u t the corrr
is affected b y the f o r t
m e n t to which it was ~,
test samples cannot re~
simulating shop treatment. Low carbon content 316
(below .05% carbon) is not as susceptible to damage
f r o m f a b r i c a t i n g and heat t r e a t m e n t a n d m a y prove
to be a superior construction m a t e r i a l f o r splitting
columns. A t present, however, this alloy is difficult
to obtain in the f o r m needed for fabrication.

:FIG. 2. This artist's picture shows a typical layout and the

relation of the individual equipment items.

feed the splitting plant, it m a y be possible to produce

satisfactory soap without distilling the f a t t y acids.
W h e r e highest p u r i t y is desired or if the feed stocks
are of low grade, distillation is necessary. The prod-
uct is clean a n d does not require neutralization or
washing prior to distillation. While the f a t t y acid is
in most cases darker t h a n the original oil, it can in
general be bleached to a color equal to or lighter t h a n .
t h a t of the original.
The first commercial p l a n t of this type was designed
to handle 3,000 pounds per h o u r as compared with 70
pounds per hour for the pilot plant. This .meant step-
ping up in the ratio about 40 to 1, which introduced
a n u m b e r of interesting problems. One was the mat-
ter of column size and proportions. Would a larger
tower split as much f a t per cubic foot of volume as a
small one ? Wouhl the w a t e r droplets tend to channel
in a commercial tower? Should the tower capacity
be stepped up b y increasing the cross sectional aroa
or the height, or both? The final answer to this was
a compromise; the tower volume was made propor-
tional to the c a p a c i t y ; most of the increase was taken
on the cross sectional area, b u t p a r t of it was taken
in the tower height. The capacity and efficiency 0f
the first commercial splitting tower indicated that the
method of sizing and proportioning was approxi-
m a t e l y correct. :~'IG. 3. The splitting column is about 60 feet high and is
The distributing devices for a d m i t t i n g fat, water, lined with corrosion rcsistant alloy.
a n d steam required considerable s t u d y for the com-
mercial plant. Moreover the economic operation of Inconcl is attacked more than T y p e 316 b y f a t t y
the plant depends to a great extent on the efficiency acids a n d water at high t e m p e r a t u r e b u t still has a
of the internal heat exchange. The design of the com- low enough corrosion rate to indicate long life. In-
mercial unit f r o m the pilot p l a n t data depended more conel does not depend on heat t r e a t m e n t for its cor-
on practical j u d g m e n t t h a n theoretical analysis. Re- rosion resistance and in addition can be obtained
sults of plant runs indicate t h a t some revision of the a n d f a b r i c a t e d in the f o r m of I n c o n e l - c l a d steel.
u p p e r heat exchange zone will be repaid in steam Inconel "B," which has a c h r o m i u m content higher
economy, while the lower heat exchange zone came t h a n the s t a n d a r d alloy, has shown i m p r o v e d resist-
fully up to expectations. ance to high t e m p e r a t u r e f a t t y acids a n d is w o r t h y
One of the i m p o r t a n t practical problems in the of consideration.
designing of a commercial f a t splitting p l a n t is the The f a t storage tanks can be f a b r i c a t e d of carbon
selection of suitable materials of construction. The steel, stainless steel, or aluminum, depending upon
splitting column operates at 500 degrees F a h r e n h e i t the type of fats used. Blow-down tanks, settling
in c o n t a c t with water and f a t t y acids and must give tanks, and f a t t y acid storage tanks are constructed
m a n y years of safe operation at 725 psi. The material of stainless steel, Inconel or aluminum, depending
selected must give a long service life, m u s t be com- u p o n the service conditions. All p a r t s of the high
mercially obtainable, and m u s t be suitable for shop pressure charging p u m p s in contact with the mate-
fabrication. The materials which best fulfill these re- rials being handled should be of stainless steel. The

FI(~. 4. A spare pump, to be used in pla(~e of eiiher feed
pump, instH'es u n i n t e r r u p t e d operation.
process piping in eontac't with lhc f a t t y acids should
be of hleonel or Tylle 316 stainless.
The E m e r y plant has proeessed principally low
grade animal fat. ]n addition to this, a n u m b e r of
other common fats have been treated successfully,
including h y d r o g e n a t e d tallow, h y d r o g e n a t e d fish oil,
coconut oil, coconut foots, cotto,secd-soya foots, as
well as still residues. We hope to make data front
some of these runs the subject of a f u t u r e paper.
TAI:i L E I
] ) a t a [,b'em I~[lIlS on lJow (h'a(h! ;~,ei!ual F a t ;
Acid | / e i l e d " l ) i s t i l l a ( i e u M i x "
Operatien
F r e e f a t t y a c i d of f(~t,(t, as o|eie ...............
' F h r o u g ] l p l l i , ll)s. per hr. .........................
P r o c e s s ",vat er r a l e , lhs, I)ev h r . ...............
F r e e f a t t y a e i d of p r o d e c L as oleic .........
G l y c e r i n e in sweel w a l e r . ........................
O p e r a t i n g R e q u i l e m e n i of C o l g a t e - E m e r y P r o c e s s p e r ] , e 0 0 |bs. feed
8 0 0 - l b . s t e a m * .........................................I
E l e c t r i c i t y ( p o w e r a n d l i g h t ) ..................I
P r o c e s s w a t e r ..........................................
L a b o r (1 o p e r a t o r ) .................................
C o m p a r i s o n , P l a n t T w o - B o i l T w i t c h c l l P r o c e s s O p e r a t i o n on S i m i l a r Mix
P r o d u c t F F A as oleic ............................
G l y c e r i n e i n s w e e t watc~ .........................
* D o e s n o t i n c l u d e low p r e s s u r e s t e a m u s e d f o r t a n k heisting, etc.
Some data f r o m p l a n t operations on low grade
animal fats are given in Table I. The mix r u n in
operation (a) was a m i x t u r e of No. 1 tallow, Special
Tallow, Diamond S Tallow, yellow grease stearine,
animal grease, extracted grease, etc., having a high
initial free f a t t y acid. The r u n is comparable with
the E m e r y Twitehell operation on the basis of ap-
p r o x i m a t e l y equal glycerine concentration, and shows
over 3% more free f a t t y acid in the product.
Operation (b) was a r u n at nearly the m a x i m u m
capacity of the feed pumps, using a mix of mostly
animal grease, containing some anfinal tallow, etc.,
with a lower initial free f a t t y acid t h a n the mix used
in (a). The data show t h a t even at a high feed rate
the free f a t t y acid of the p l a n t TwitchelI process is
exceeded, with considerably higher glycerine concen-
t r a t i o n in this ease. The s u r p r i s i n g l y small drop in
free f a t t y acid at the higher rate is noteworthy, and
the significance is u n d e r investigation.
OIL CHEMISTS' SOCIETY, MARCH,1948
Utility a n d labor requirements corresponding to
the respective operating conditions are included in
the table and are based on operation exclusive of
starting and stopping. The electricity and labor
items are constant hourly charges as one m a n oper-
ates the p l a n t and the feed p u m p s r u n at constant
load. These arc reduced therefore in proportion as
the t h r o u g h p u t is increased. I n addition to the high
pressure steam requirement shown, low pressure steam
is used to melt the fat and heat it to 180-200~ to
w a r m the water to a p p r o x i m a t e l y 100~ and to keep
the traced p u m p i n g lines warm. This is unmetered,
and would n a t u r a l l y v a r y with storage and other
conditions.
With regard to possible limitations of the process
a limited alnount of l a b o r a t o r y work on linseed oil
indicates that the Iodine Value drops a little, b u t
not to a serious degree. Fish oil, however, has an
Iodine Valne drop of about 20 to 40 points, and it
m a y be t h a t fish oil cannot be satisfar.torily split b y
the standard process being discussed.
(a) (h)
;L9% 28%
3450 4500
] ~190 I S(}(}
99.3% 98.1%
12.OC~) 16.7%
1841hs. 1541bs.
5.3 K W H 4.1 K W H ]7IO. 5. The entire plant is controlled from a single instru-
4 8 5 lbs. 4 0 0 lbs. m e n t panel.
0.29 man-hr. 0.22 man-hr.
I t has been f o u n d possible to switch f r o m one t y p e
96 [ 97
117o I 1"3% of feed stock to another with little or no intermixing.
This is done b y stopping the f a t feed b u t continuing
the water feed. As soon as all of the f a t t y acid has
been discharged f r o m the tower the new feed stock
is started in. D u r i n g this period the u p p e r heat
exchange section functions while f a t t y acid is dis-
charged, and the lower one functions while the new
f a t is p u m p e d in. A b o u t eight h o u r s ' time is lost
a n d all of the f a t f r o m both feed stocks d u r i n g the
switch-over is satisfactorily split.
Some advantages of the process described in this
p a p e r are :
1. The process can be operated at high rates and with high
degrees of split without the use of catalyst. The plant
capacity can be f u r t h e r increased by using a small a m o u n t
of catalyst and in certain eases this m a y be a reasonable
thing to do.
2. Compared with the Twitehell process, t r e a t m e n t of the
c h a r g i n g stock is much less critical. W i t h high grade f a t s
an acid boil is not required and it is only necessary to
remove the suspended impurities.
3. B y this process a split of 98% can be obtained.
4. The f a t t y acid product is considerably lighter in color
t h a n t h a t obtained by the Twitchell splitting of the same
 THE JOURNAb OF TH~ AMEriCAN Om C~EMISTS' SOCIETY, MARCH, 1948 99

g r a d e of f a t a n d is f r e e f r o m u n s a p o n i f i a b l e s i n t r o d u c e d pressure, even though the column size must of neces-

by th e T w i t c h e l l r e a g e n t . W i t h h i g h g r a d e f e e d stocks, i t
is p o s s i b l e to m a k e a good g r a d e of f a t t y a c i d w i t h o u t
sity be larger. For plants having capacities less than
d i s t i l l a t i o n , wMch can be used f o r soap a n d m a n y prod- a b o u t 3,000 lbs. per hour, it may be good engineering
ucts. B y a s u i t a b l e b l e a c h the p r o d u c t can be m a d e to use a lower pressure, thereby having a column size
g e n e r a l l y l i g h t e r in color t h a n the o r i g i n a l f a t . which can be more easily fabricated, and will afford
5. W i t h h i g h e r g r a d e f a t s , the g l y c e r i n e c o n c e n t r a t i o n i n access for inspection of the interior. By the use of a
the sweet w a t e r can be 13 to 1 8 % , or in g e n e r a l more
c o n c e n t r a t e d t h a n o b t a i n e d b y t h e T w i t c h e l l method. A
small amount of catalyst the through-put can be in-
l i g h t l i m e t r e a t m e n t is all t h a t is r e q u i r e d to c o a g u l a t e creased greatly or the operating temperature may be
i m p u r i t i e s a n d t h e c o n c e n t r a t e d g l y c e r i n e is p r a c t i c a l l y lowered.
ash free.
In addition to its use in fat splitting, the process
6. The pro cess has e x c e p t i o n a l h e a t economy, s p l i t t i n g more may be of general interest for carrying out certain
t h a n five p o u n d s of f a t f o r e v e r y p o u n d of h i g h p r e s s u r e
s t e a m used. types of chemical reactions. Any two immiscible (or
7". A l l of the i n h e r e n t a d v a n t a g e s of a c o n t i n u o u s a n d partially miscible) liquids which react reversibly at
c o u n t e r c m ' r e n t process a r e realized, i n c l u d i n g ease of elevated temperature and pressure might be handled
control a n d o p e r a t i o n , u n i f o r m i t y of p r o d u c t , low l a b o r in the same type of plant. As an example, the hy-
cost, h i g h t h r o u g h - p u t , low u n i f o r m s t e a m a n d pow e r
c o n s u m p t i o n , s m a l l space r e q u i r e m e n t , a n d low i nt e r-
drolysis of chlorobenzenes with aqueous caustic to
process i n v e n t o r y . form phenols might be carried out in this type of
8. The o v e r a l l cost of s p l i t t i n g is less t h a n by u s u a l methods. apparatus.
The process carries out in a modern continuous way The problems involved in the commercialization of
an operation which has for almost a century been this method of operation have been successfully
handled by a batch method. Since it is a continuous solved. Commercial plant results have demonstrated
process it fits well with any other continuous process, that most of the commercial fats can be split to a
for example those processes involving solvent extrac- high degree and at a low cost. The process is finding
tion prior to splitting and distillation, solvent separa- wide application for purposes such as fa tty acid
tion [Emersol process (7)], and neutralization (for manufacture and soap making. The generM process-
the manufacture of soap) following splitting. ing method and plant equipment may be adapted
F a t t y acids are basic chemical building blocks and to other chemical reactions between two immiscible
can be used as intermediates for a multitude of prod- liquids.
ucts. By fractional distillation and solvent crystalli- /~E~'ERENCES
zation individual fatty acids can be prepared which 1. Tilghman--Patent No. 11,766.
can be used as starting materials to make specific 2. Procter and Gamhle---"Coutinnous Process fur Soap," by Gordon
W. McBride, Chemical Engineering--April, 1947.
chemical compounds. 3. Mills, V.---U. S. Patent 2,156,86:~ (May 2, 1939). -/
4. Ittner, M. H.--U. S. Pattmt Rei. 22,006 (Jan. 13 1942).--
]'he standard process can be modified to meet spe- 5. Brown, A. C.--Patent~ applied for in U'. S. and fore gn countries.
cific requirements. In the case of certain special ~'~ Allen, II. D., Kline, "W. A., Lawr~mec, E. A., Arrowsmltb, C. g.,
and Marsel, C., Chemical Engineering Progress 43, 459 (1947).
products, such as drying oils, it may be desirable 7. Kistler, R. F., lVIuckerheide, V. ,I., Myers, L. ]).---"The Commer-
cial Solwmt Separation of l!'at~y Acids"- 4~il and Seap, May 1946, Vol.
to operate at a somewhat lower temperature and XX[I[, No. 5, pp. 146 to 150.

Preparation and Properties of ,Cottonseed

Protein Dispersions 1
JETT C. ARTHUR, JR., and MELVIN K. KARON, Southern Regional Research Laboratory, ~~
New Orleans 19, Louisiana

I I E u t i l i z a t i o n of vegetable proteins in the teins prepared under different processing conditions

T manufacture of fibers, films, adhesives, paper
and textile sizes, cold water paints, and related
(2), the peptization of cottonseed proteins by various "
acids and bases (3, 4), the pigments of cottonseed
products is dependent on various physical proper- (5, 6, 7, 8, 9), methods for separating the pigment
ties of the proteins p e r se and of their aqueous glands from cottonseed (8, 10), and the viscosity
dispersions. A number of these properties, e.g., dis- characteristics of relatively concentrated dispersions
persibility in various media and the viscosity char- of cottonseed protein (11).
acteristies of concentrated d i s p e r s i o n s have been The last mentioned article is also concerned with
investigated in the case of soybean and peanut pro- the difficulties of avoiding gel formation during the
teins. Similar but less extensive investigations have preparation of cottonseed protein dispersions in high
been reported for cottonseed proteins. These in- protein concentration and in preparing dispersions
vestigations include the factors which inthtence tile having tacky and viscous characteristics.
peptization of protein in solvent-extracted and hy- The industrial utilization of cottonseed meal and
draulic-pressed cottonseed meal (1), cottonseed pro- proteins has heretofore been retarded because the
extra.cted proteins are not appreciably dispersible in
Presented at the 21st Fall Meeting of the American Oil Chemists'
Society, October 20-22, 1947, at Chicago, Illinois. aqueous alkali solutions below pH 11.7. The present
One of the laboratories of the Bureau of Agricultural and Industrial
Chemistry, Agricultural Research Administration, U. S. Department of
report is concerned with an investigation of methods
Agriculture. for preparing nongelling dispersions of cottonseed