Polyunsaturated fatty acid and fatty acid ester mixtures free of sterols and phosphorus compounds

摘要

This invention relates to a process for removing sterols and phosphorous compounds from naturally occurring lipid mixtures. The process involves hydrolyzing a naturally occurring lipid mixture containing phospholipids, triglycerides, and sterols to form a two-phase product containing a fatty acid phase comprised of free fatty acids and sterols, and an aqueous phase comprised of water, glycerol, and glycerol phosphoric acid esters. The aqueous phase is separated from the fatty acid phase and the crude fatty acid phase is heated to convert the free sterols to fatty acid sterol esters. The free fatty acids are distilled from the fatty acid sterol esters to yield purified fatty acids which are free of cholesterol and other sterols, and phosphorous compounds.