Electrolysis of coconut fatty acids in anhydrous methanol

Authors

  • Corazon P. Macalisang Chemistry Department, Mindanao State University, Marawi, Lanao del Norte
  • Florentino C. Sumera Institute of Chemistry, University of the Philippines, Quezon City

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.26534/kimika.v19i1.7-15

Keywords:

oleochemicals, coconut fatty acids, electrolysis, 1-undecanol, antifungal property

Abstract

Electrolysis of coconut fatty acids in anhydrous methanol in the presence of KCl and KOH at 50°C with Pt as cathode and C as anode produced high yield of product (96% by mass). Separation of the product into fractions by column chromatography and subsequent analysis by IR, GC, and GC-Mass spectroscopy gave the following compositions of the column fractions: 7.68% fatty alkene and fatty alkyl chloride (in the n-hexane fraction), 44.01% fatty ether (in the 90:10 v/v n-hexane:ethyl acetate fraction), 38.45% of probable mixtures of fatty alcohols and fatty esters (in the 60:40 v/v n-hexane:ethyl acetate fraction) and the rest 9.86% of undetermined composition adsorbed in the silica gel column. The identity of most of the compounds in the column fractions were identified by GC-Mass spectroscopy. The electrolysis product showed positive antimicrobial activity against the fungi, Trichophyton mentagrophytes but no activity towards the bacteria Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli and the yeast Candida albicans. This bioactivity was traced to the column fraction containing the active 1-undecanol.

Downloads

Published

2003-06-01

How to Cite

Macalisang, C. P., & Sumera, F. C. (2003). Electrolysis of coconut fatty acids in anhydrous methanol. KIMIKA, 19(1), 7–15. https://doi.org/10.26534/kimika.v19i1.7-15

Issue

Vol. 19 No. 1 (2003)

Section

Research Articles

License

Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:

  1. Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgement of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.
  2. Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this journal.
  3. Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work (See The Effect of Open Access).