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The secret of glycerin production: the story behind plant and animal sources?
Glycerin, a common ingredient in food and medicine, what unknown production secrets does it have? It is not only a colorless, odorless, viscous liquid, but also widely used in the food industry and pharmaceutical field. When we explore the origin of this substance, we can easily find that it contains both plant and animal ingredients, and its production method has also undergone major changes in recent years.
Source and extraction of glycerol
The main sources of glycerol are triglycerides from plants and animals, which are esters of glycerol and long-chain fatty acids. By hydrolyzing, saponifying or transesterifying these triglycerides, we can extract glycerol and the corresponding fatty acids.
"From 2000 to 2004, the United States and Europe produced about 950,000 tons of glycerin each year, of which the United States accounted for 350,000 tons."
With the rise of biofuels, glycerol supply has gradually increased since 2010, causing its price to plummet, even falling to $0.02 to $0.05 per kilogram in 2011. High-purity glycerin needs to be purified through a multi-step distillation process, which is a relatively expensive process.
History of Synthetic Glycerin
While current economic conditions make synthetic glycerin expensive, during World War II, the process of producing synthetic glycerin became a high priority for national defense because it was an important precursor to making nitroglycerin. At the time, chlorinated propylene was a major precursor and the process gained great importance during the war.
Glycerin’s various uses
Food Industry
Glycerin plays an increasingly important role as a humectant, solvent and sweetener in foods and beverages. Its caloric density is similar to that of white sugar, but its glycemic index is lower than that of table sugar. As a food additive, glycerol is labeled as E422.
"Glycerol is used as a bulking agent in low-fat foods and also plays a role in the protection of some plant leaves."
Medical Uses
In medical and personal care products, glycerin is valued for its smooth feel and moisturizing properties. It can be used in medicines such as cough syrups and skin care products, and it also helps stabilize certain medications.
Electronic cigarettes and coolants
Currently, glycerin is one of the main ingredients in e-liquid, used together with propylene glycol as a medium for vaporization and delivery of nicotine. At the same time, due to its low toxicity, the application of glycerol in antifreeze has also attracted widespread attention.
Metabolism and safety of glycerol
Glycerol is an important precursor for the synthesis of triglycerides and phospholipids and is mainly metabolized in the liver. At the same time, glycerol has extremely low toxicity in the human body and will not cause any health problems.
Conclusion"The LD50 data for glycerol show that this compound has very low toxicity to rats and mice and does not cause significant toxic reactions when inhaled."
As a versatile chemical material, glycerol's applications in various fields are constantly expanding, and its production process also reflects the transformation of today's bioeconomy. In the future, as we learn more about biofuels and other environmentally friendly technologies, will the sources of glycerol change radically?
