Interesterification

Interesterification of oil changes its molecular composition. Oils or fats are mixture of various triacylglycerol molecules having different fatty acids and positional distribution.Treating oils and fats with sodium methoxide as a catalyst at 80 °C causes intermolecule ester exchange, changing the molecular composition, while leaving the fatty acid composition unchanged. As a result, the oil changes its physical properties such as melting point and consistency.