Process for producing polyoxyethylene sorbitan fatty acid ester

摘要

A process for producing a polyoxyethylene sorbitan fatty acid ester in which the bitterness just after the production and the bitterness with the lapse of time is suppressed. The process of the invention includes reacting an ester (component A) of a fatty acid having 10 to 22 carbon atoms and a monohydric alcohol having 1 to 3 carbon atoms with at least either (component B) of sorbitol and sorbitan to form a sorbitan fatty acid ester and adding ethylene oxide to the sorbitan fatty acid ester, thereby producing a polyoxyethylene sorbitan fatty acid ester, which is characterized that the following steps (a) to (d) are contained: (a) the component B is provided in the form of a 50 to 90% by weight aqueous solution and mixed with the component A and dehydration was performed until a water content in the system reaches 1.0% by weight or less based on the total weight of the components A and B; (b) 1 to 10% by weight of a monohydric alcohol having 1 to 3 carbon atoms and 0.1 to 1.0% by weight of an alkali catalyst based on the total weight of the components A and B are added at 50 to 90° C.; (c) a transesterification reaction is performed under a nitrogen stream at a reaction temperature of 140 to 190° C. to thereby obtain a sorbitan fatty acid ester; (d) ethylene oxide is added thereto at a reaction temperature of 70 to 130° C.