Studies on the Utilization of Tall Oil. VI.

In the previous paper, preparation of the mixed methyl esters, consisted of fatty and rosin esters, was discussed. In this paper, these esters were converted into mixed alcohols, consisted of fatty and rosin alcohol, by Bouvealt-Blanc reaction. The kind, amount of reduced alcohol, amount of sodium in the reduction and the distillation of produced crude alcohol were discussed. Tertiary butyl alcohol was most suitable for reduction in the case of all esters. Because saponification value of the esters containing rosin ester can not be accurately determined, theoretical requirement for sodium and reducing alcohol could not be calculated. However, excess sodium and reducing alcohol seems to increase the yield of mixed alcohol. Against author's expectation, these esters have a saponifying tendencies, when excess sodium is present. Methyl ester from distilled tall oil is less saponifiable than that from crude tall oil in the reduction reaction. When distilled the crude alcohols produced, under reduced pressure, fatty alcohols are distilled out firstly and the rosin alcohol subsequently. Distillation residue is considered to be a polymerized rosin esters, the rotation property of which is extremely changed owing to the isomerization caused by heating.