Ivan A. Wolff

Search for new industrial oils. VII

Seed oils from 37 plant species in 18 families have been analyzed for fatty acid composition by the isomerization method. The variability encountered is evidenced by the range in content of component acids: from 0–23% for apparent linolenic acid, from 8–74% for apparent linoleic acid, and from 2–88% for apparent oleic acid. Dimorphecolic acid has been found to the extent of approximately 60% in a second species ofDimorphotheca, D. pluvialis (L.) Moench, and in the closely related species,Osteospermum ecklonis (DC.) T. Norl.O. spinescens Thunb. contained instead 30% of a conjugated triene, presumably the same as the 8,10,12-octadecatrienoic reported from the relatedCalendula officinalis L. Oils rich in monoenoic acids are mostly in the Umbelliferae and Araliaceae and presumably contain petroselinic acid as well as oleic.

Search for new industrial oils. V. Oils of cruciferae

Seeds from 37 species of plants in the family Cruciferae were analyzed for oil and protein, and the fatty acid composition of the oils was determined by gas-liquid chromatography. Erucic acid, generally considered characteristic of crucifer oils, occurs in about three-fourths of these species in amounts ranging from 3 to 59%. Some oils free of erucic acid contain up to 63% linolenic acid or up to 58% eicosenoic.

Search for new industrial oils. III. Oils from compositae

SummaryScreening analyses of oils from seeds of 16 species of theCompositae family reveal numerous indications of unusual component fatty acids or interferences with the application of standard methods. Epoxyoleic acid is indicated in amounts from 1% to 67%. Conjugated dienes equivalent to 5% to 48% of C18 acid appear in four oils. Hydroxyl groups are found in two oils in amounts corresponding to 20% and 70% of a C18 acid.Of special interest is the oil fromDimorphotheca aurantiaca, which appears to contain some 50% of an acid with both an hydroxyl group and conjugated diene.Oil fromRudbeckia bicolor var.superba contains 76% of apparent linoleic acid and may rank among the richest sources of this acid.

The search for new industrial crops

Advances in technological development have produced an ever-increasing pressure for new and different raw materials to keep pace with changing industrial needs. Many new and useful properties of plants may be discovered through the modern chemistry and technology of utilization research. The U. S. Department of Agriculture’s search for new industrial crops is a coordinated botanical and utilization research program.

Three new oilseeds rich incis-11-eicosenoic acid

Marshallia cacspitosa Nutt. seed oil (family Compositae) contains 44%cis-11-eicosenoic acid, and is the first oil from the Compositae found to contain a high proportion of C20-monoenoic acid. Seed oils ofAlyssum maritimum (L.) Lam. and ofSelenia grandis Martin (family Cruciferae) contain 42 and 58% of the same acid, respectively.The C20 acids from all three oils were obtained in nearly pure form by fractional distillation of the mixed methyl esters by means of a spinning band column. Permanganate-periodate oxidation of the purified methyl esters yielded predominantly nonanoic and undecanedioic acids.

Seed protein sources—Amino acid composition and total protein content of various plant seeds

An extensive literature survey on seed proteins has been made, with attention given to both amino acid composition of various seed proteins and the total quantity of protein produced by the seeds. Data have been grouped according to botanical classifications and correlations drawn where possible. The various plant families have been rated according to their protentialities as protein-producing seed crops in the United States. As a beginning towards filling in some obvious gaps in amino acid composition data, amino acid assays have been carried out for the first time on nine species of seeds.

Preparation and evaluation of surface-active brassylic acid-ethylene oxide adducts

AbstractBoth liquid and solid surface-active adducts of brassylic (tridecanedioic) acid were prepared by potassium hydroxide-catalyzed addition of ethylene oxide gas to the molten acid. The number-average molecular weights

Search for new industrial oils. II. Oils with high iodine values

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