The rele of chain length and an emulsifier on the polymorphism of mixtures of triglycerides

The appearance of the β′ form in the α-β transformation in tristearin is hardly detectable. On the other hand, in mixtures of tristearin and tripalmitin at different ratios, β′ formation has been observed to be favored. This observation confirms the statement in the literature that in mixtures of different chain lengths orthorhombic packing is stabilized. When an emulsifier was added to the mixtures, both the β′ and β formation were inhibited. The effect caused by the addition of the emulsifier as an impurity to tristearin is compared to that caused by the addition of tripalmitin: their effects, although both kinetic, were very different. In spite of this difference, they both have implications in the confectionery and fats industries.