38
J. Chen et al.
general. Since the 1950s, oleochemistry has grown to a major research and technology
area in several institutions and industries. A large variety of products based on fats and
oils have been developed since then for different uses, such as specialties for polymer
applications, biodiesel, surfactants, emollients for home and personal care industries,
pesticides and biodegradable mineral oil replacements for lubricants. However, at
present it seems that the use of renewable resources, especially plant oils, have to
compete more and more with the increasing demand for bioenergy, which could cause
an unbalanced supply and demand in the future or even a threat for the increasing
demand for food in certain areas of the world.
The industrial use of agricultural commodities has been an issue generating a significant amount of interest. As the cost of petroleum-derived products increases, the
need to change to a more bio-based economy can be clearly seen. In addition to food
uses, plant oils have found their way into industrial products in the plastics, pharmaceutical, inks, adhesives, coatings, and many other industries. The advantages of
plant oil-derived industrial products can be illustrated by several of the 12 principles
of green chemistry (Schwartz et al. 2008) including the call for the use of renewable
feedstock, the minimization of hazards and the generation of substances with as little
toxicity as possible. Because of their bio-based nature, products formed from plant
oil are often biodegradable, and because the CO 2 generated from their degradation
can be incorporated into the next year’s crop, they can be nearly CO 2 neutral.
1.2.2.2 Examples of Products
Oils and fats are triglycerides with different compositions of the alkyl chains depending on their origin. In industrial processing, they are transferred into fatty acid methyl
esters, fatty acids, glycerol, and, as hydrogenation products of the fatty acid methyl
esters, fatty alcohols by applying standard manufacturing technologies [29]. Further
chemical processes lead to the desired specialty chemicals.
1.2.2.3 Oleochemicals for Polymer Applications
Oleochemicals as polymer materials represent a relatively small market, but are
well established. We have to keep in mind that before crude oil was explored, the
only possibility to do chemistry was by using renewable resources. One example is
linseed oil, which is used to produce linoleum. Here, the demand has increased from
10,000 tons in 1975 to 50,000 tons in 1998 (coming from 120,000 tons in 1960!).
Another example: epoxidized soybean oil (ESO) as a plastic and coating additive has
a relatively stable market of approximately 100,000 tons/year. It is worth mentioning
that the dicarboxylic acids are industrially produced either via ozonolysis of oleic acid
to produce azelaic acid, (one of the few examples of large-scale industrial ozonolysis)
or by dimerization of linoleic acid and oleic acid to obtain complex mixtures of high
molecular weight diacids (e.g., EM-POL types), originally introduced in the 1950s
by General Mills Chemicals and Emery (both now Cognis Corp.).
J. Chen et al.
general. Since the 1950s, oleochemistry has grown to a major research and technology
area in several institutions and industries. A large variety of products based on fats and
oils have been developed since then for different uses, such as specialties for polymer
applications, biodiesel, surfactants, emollients for home and personal care industries,
pesticides and biodegradable mineral oil replacements for lubricants. However, at
present it seems that the use of renewable resources, especially plant oils, have to
compete more and more with the increasing demand for bioenergy, which could cause
an unbalanced supply and demand in the future or even a threat for the increasing
demand for food in certain areas of the world.
The industrial use of agricultural commodities has been an issue generating a significant amount of interest. As the cost of petroleum-derived products increases, the
need to change to a more bio-based economy can be clearly seen. In addition to food
uses, plant oils have found their way into industrial products in the plastics, pharmaceutical, inks, adhesives, coatings, and many other industries. The advantages of
plant oil-derived industrial products can be illustrated by several of the 12 principles
of green chemistry (Schwartz et al. 2008) including the call for the use of renewable
feedstock, the minimization of hazards and the generation of substances with as little
toxicity as possible. Because of their bio-based nature, products formed from plant
oil are often biodegradable, and because the CO 2 generated from their degradation
can be incorporated into the next year’s crop, they can be nearly CO 2 neutral.
1.2.2.2 Examples of Products
Oils and fats are triglycerides with different compositions of the alkyl chains depending on their origin. In industrial processing, they are transferred into fatty acid methyl
esters, fatty acids, glycerol, and, as hydrogenation products of the fatty acid methyl
esters, fatty alcohols by applying standard manufacturing technologies [29]. Further
chemical processes lead to the desired specialty chemicals.
1.2.2.3 Oleochemicals for Polymer Applications
Oleochemicals as polymer materials represent a relatively small market, but are
well established. We have to keep in mind that before crude oil was explored, the
only possibility to do chemistry was by using renewable resources. One example is
linseed oil, which is used to produce linoleum. Here, the demand has increased from
10,000 tons in 1975 to 50,000 tons in 1998 (coming from 120,000 tons in 1960!).
Another example: epoxidized soybean oil (ESO) as a plastic and coating additive has
a relatively stable market of approximately 100,000 tons/year. It is worth mentioning
that the dicarboxylic acids are industrially produced either via ozonolysis of oleic acid
to produce azelaic acid, (one of the few examples of large-scale industrial ozonolysis)
or by dimerization of linoleic acid and oleic acid to obtain complex mixtures of high
molecular weight diacids (e.g., EM-POL types), originally introduced in the 1950s
by General Mills Chemicals and Emery (both now Cognis Corp.).