On the relation between illumination and electrical conductivity in selenium

✍ Scribed by G.F.S.

• Publisher: Elsevier Science
• Year: 1920
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 62 KB
• Volume: 190
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0016-0032
• DOI: 10.1016/s0016-0032(20)92034-3

✦ Synopsis

of the University of Manchester, England, have devised a method for the chemical decomposition of fats with the production of glycerol and an edible by-product--the mannitol esters of the fatty acids, which are synthetic fats and oils. This research is described in the Biochemical Journal, i9~9, xiii, 296-300. Olein, such as olive oil or stearin, is mixed with mannitol and a small amount of dry sodium ethoxide which functions as a catalyst. The mixture is distilled under reduced pressure. The distillate consists of glycerol, water, and a small amount of alcohol. The residue in the distillation vessel is a substance which possesses many of the properties of the original fat; in chemical compositions it corresponds closely to a mixture of the dioleates or distearates of mannitan and isomannide. The maximum yield of glycerol is obtained when fat and mannitol are mixed in the ratio of two molecules of the former and three molecules of the latter.

J. S. H.