Mono- and Diglycerides

Mono- and diglycerides are the most commonly used food emulsifiers. They consist of
esters synthesized via catalytic transesterification of glycerol with triglycerides, with the
usual triglyceride source as hydrogenated soybean oil. Mono- and diglycerides are also
synthesized directly from glycerol and fatty acids under alkaline conditions. Molecular
distillation is used to prepare a purified product containing up to approximately 90%
monoglycerol. Monoglycerols can be prepared from the reaction of glycidol (2,3-epoxy-
1-propanol) and carboxylic acids with a yield in excess of 90%. Advantages of the
process include the synthesis of difficult to produce monoglycerides and a good
potential for continuous processing. Mono- and diglycerols have also been obtained
from a butterfat fraction by chemical glycerolysis. The enzymatic preparation of mono-
and distearin by glycerolysis of ethylstearate and direct esterification of glycerol in the
presence of a lipase from Candida antarctica has also been reported.
Several tests are used for characterizing commercial sources of mono- and
diglycerides, including total monoglycerides, hydroxyl value, iodine value, and the
saponification value. With the monoesters, the fatty acid can be attached at either the
alpha or beta positions, as with the diglycerides (see Figure 2).