Quantitative gas liquid chromatographic analysis of butterfat triglycerides

Abstract

Abstract Gas liquid chromatographic triglyceride separation by carbon number, and integration of the area response obtained in the hydrogen flame ionization detector, has permitted the calculation of the following molar proportions for the various triglyceride types in a blended butterfat sample: C 24 0.5, C 25 0.08, C 26 0.57, C 27 0.18, C 28 0.81, C 29 0.17, C 30 1.15, C 31 0.2, C 32 3.1, C 33 0.34, C 34 5.41, C 35 1.0, C 36 10.6, C 37 1.2, C 38 12.8, C 39 1.15, C 40 10.7, C 41 1.0, C 42 6.1, C 43 0.58, C 44 5.15, C 45 0.6, C 46 5.8, C 47 1.0, C 48 6.45, C 49 1.47, C 50 8.5, C 51 1.43, C 52 6.95, C 53 1.05, C 54 4.0. The validity of these estimates was verified by similar determinations performed on molecular distillates of butterfat and on butterfats with known amounts of added saturated and unsaturated long chain triglycerides. The fatty acid carbon recoveries estimated on the basis of the observed triglyceride peak proportions were of the order of 95% or better. A comparison of the experimentally determined triglyceride type distributions with those calculated on the basis of a completely random fatty acid arrangement for the blended and the molecularly distilled samples showed considerable differences, the most apparent of which was the greater proportion of both short and long chain triglycerides consistently predicted for the random population. On the basis of these studies, it is suggested that butterfat possesses a non‐random fatty acid distribution which is reflected in its triglyceride type distribution.