Thermodynamic model of liquid-solid equilibria for natural fats and oils

Abstract

Natural fats and oils are important raw materials in the food, detergent and paint industries. However, little attention has been paid to the thermodynamic model of the phase equilibria of triglyceride mixtures, which are the main constituents of natural fats and oils. The objective of this paper is to develop a thermodynamic method to predict the melting and solidification temperatures and the equilibrium compositions of the solid and liquid phases between these two temperatures. The cloud point temperatures calculated by the present model agree with those reported values within a few degrees, however, the calculated melting points are substantially lower than those reported.