Purifying Unsaponifiables via Stripping
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current processes for extracting unsaponifiables from vegetable oil refining by-products fail to obtain a purified total unsaponifiable containing all natural constituents while effectively eliminating impurities, due to the diverse chemical natures and varying physicochemical properties of these compounds, leading to degradation and loss of valuable components.
Innovation Solution
A process involving stripping operations with a carrier gas under controlled temperature and vacuum gradients, specifically increasing temperature from 80°C to 250°C and decreasing vacuum from 50 to 1 mbar, to selectively eliminate impurities like sapid, odorous, and toxic compounds, while preserving the composition and yield of unsaponifiables.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If conventional extraction processes are used to obtain unsaponifiables from vegetable oil by-products, then the extraction process is simple and cost-effective, but the product contains impurities and suffers from degradation of valuable components
Solution Approach 1:
The patent divides the extraction process into multiple sequential steps: initial extraction, filtration, concentration, and purification. Each step targets specific impurities or aspects of the unsaponifiable fraction, allowing comprehensive removal of harmful substances while preserving valuable components through progressively refined separation operations
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies preliminary treatment steps before the main extraction process, including pre-filtration of the vegetable oil by-product and preliminary concentration of the unsaponifiable fraction. These preliminary actions prepare the material for more effective subsequent purification while minimizing degradation of sensitive compounds
2Object-affected harmful factors
If advanced purification methods are applied to remove all impurities, then the product purity is high, but the process complexity and cost increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent selectively extracts the unsaponifiable fraction from the vegetable oil by-product using targeted solvents and separation techniques. By focusing extraction efforts specifically on the unsaponifiable components rather than attempting to purify the entire oil mixture, the process achieves high purity with moderate complexity
Solution Approach 2:
The patent employs controlled changes in physical parameters such as temperature, pressure, and solvent composition during different extraction and purification stages. These parameter adjustments optimize the separation efficiency at each step, achieving high purity products through a series of moderate complexity operations rather than a single complex process
3Object-affected harmful factors
If high temperature and extended processing are used to ensure complete purification, then the removal of impurities is thorough, but the degradation of heat-sensitive unsaponifiable components increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses periodic or sequential processing steps with varying intensity levels. Instead of continuous high-temperature processing, the method alternates between extraction at moderate temperatures, filtration steps, and controlled concentration phases, allowing thorough impurity removal while giving heat-sensitive components periodic recovery periods
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces intermediary substances such as selective solvents and protective agents during the extraction and purification process. These intermediaries facilitate the removal of impurities at lower temperatures by forming temporary complexes or altering solubility characteristics, thereby protecting heat-sensitive unsaponifiable components from thermal degradation
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This method achieves a high-yield purification of total unsaponifiable vegetable oil, free from impurities, maintaining the relative composition of original oil constituents, suitable for cosmetic, pharmaceutical, and food applications, with reduced pesticide residues and improved safety standards.
Implementation Method 1
stripping operations with a carrier gas under controlled temperature and vacuum gradients, specifically increasing temperature from 80°C to 250°C and decreasing vacuum from 50 to 1 mbar, to selectively eliminate impurities
Implementation Method 2
stripping operations with a carrier gas under controlled temperature and vacuum gradients... to selectively eliminate impurities like sapid, odorous, and toxic compounds
Implementation Method 3
stripping operations with a carrier gas... to selectively eliminate impurities
Data Source
Figure 1
AI summary
The invention relates to the use of at least one coproduct of the vegetable-oil refining industry for obtaining a purified total unsaponifiable vegetable oil product which is free of the impurities initially found in said coproduct, and which is advantageously free of sapid and odorant compounds and/or of chemical compounds resulting from the breakdown and decomposition of vegetable oils. The invention also relates to a method for obtaining a purified total unsaponifiable vegetable oil product from at least one coproduct from the vegetal-oil refining industry. The invention also relates to a purified total unsaponifiable vegetable oil product that can be obtained by said method, and to compositions containing such an unsaponifiable product. The invention further relates to such unsaponifiable products or such compositions for the use thereof as a drug, medical device, dermatological agent, cosmetic agent, or nutraceutical agent for humans or animals.