Enzymatic Synthesis of Estolides from Castor Oil

Estolides are fatty acid polyesters with applications in both industry and consumer products. Recently, reports have emerged detailing lipase-catalyzed synthesis of estolides from free hydroxy fatty acids. In this paper, we describe a simple alternative enzymatic process, in which castor oil is directly converted to an estolide mixture by Candida antarctica lipase A (CALA) catalyzed transesterification. The reaction mixture is analyzed by NMR to determine the estolide number (EN) and MALDI MS to identify individual components, in addition to titration to determine the acid value (AV). Estolide trimers and tetramers (EN 2–3) were formed over 24 h in a system with 2:1 (v/v) castor oil–water. Further, utilizing different lipase specificities, addition of Thermomyces lanuginosus lipase (TLL), allowed the CALA product mixture to be cleaned up by hydrolyzing attached glycerol. In addition, a three-enzyme process is suggested, in which a simple alcohol is added and Candida antarctica lipase B (CALB) is used to esterify carboxylic acids to lower AV.