Acetone as a selective solvent for vegetable oils

Summary It has been shown that useful fractionations of soyabean and linseed oils can be made, using a selective solvent consisting of 3 to 7 parts of water per 100 parts acetone. Equilibrium diagrams were determined for soybean oil, using 3.5 and 6 parts water per 100 parts acetone, and for linseed, using 5 parts water per 100 parts acetone. Operation of a packed column, 2‐in. in diameter, 20 ft. high, showed that consistent H.E.T.S. values were obtained, using the above diagrams, and gave an average H.E.T.S. of 3.1 ft. for 1/4‐in. berl saddles and 5.9 ft. for 1/2‐in. raschig rings. The use of the equilibrium diagrams is illustrated by application to a hypothetical separation.