Abstract
Sugar ester was synthesized enzymatically using an immobilized commercial Canadia Antarctica lipase. The enzymatic reactions were carried out in 2-methyl-2-propanol. Glucose, methyl glucoside, sucrose, fructose, sorbitol, and xylitol were used as acyl acceptor. Oleic acid and stearic acid were used as acyl donor. It was found that the solubility of sugar in organic solvent could be an important factor in the enzymatic sugar ester synthesis and a solvent having a good solubility for sugar is needed for a higher sugar ester yield. Molar ratio of sugar to fatty acid also affected the final conversion of sugar ester. In a bench scale reaction system, the highest conversion ratio of 94% was obtained when xylitol and oleic acid were used as sugar and fatty acid sources, respectively. The conversions for sorbitol oleate, fructose oleate and xylitol strearate were 91%, 85% and 93%, respectively.
