African drying oils. IV. Component sunflower seed oil. acids of some linoleic‐rich oils

The fatty oils from ten specimens of African sunflower seed from widely different areas, and an Argentine sunflower seed oil have been studied. The iodine values of the oils raged from 113–136, their linoleic acid contents from 44% to 72% and their oleic acid contents from 43% to 14%. Sunflower seed oils in which linoleic acid forms about 70% or more of the total fatty acids are excellent non‐yellowing drying oils. Although the results reported in this paper are insufficient to define whether the wide variations in the proportions of linoleic and oleic acids arc due to environmental or varietal causes, there is reason to consider that the environment of the sunflower plant exerts a much greater influence on the composition of the oil than differences in the variety of seed grown.