A combined procedure of supercritical fluid extraction and molecular distillation for the purification of alkylglycerols from shark liver oil

Abstract

Ethanolysis of squalene free shark liver oil was carried out to obtain a product mixture comprised mainly of fatty acid ethyl esters and non-esterified alkylglycerols. Purification of non-esterified alkylglycerols from this product mixture via supercritical fluid extraction and short-path distillation has been compared. The effect of temperature and mass flow in a sequential distillation strategy was evaluated. In addition, combination of supercritical fluid extraction and short-path distillation to obtain a product highly enriched in alkylglycerols readily for human consumption was also studied.