Triacylglycerols chain length structure

Figure 4. Typical variations in the chain-length structures of triacylglycerol crystals. An arrow means a leaflet.

Overall, DSC is an excellent method to measure the wax appearance and crystallization temperatures of vegetable oils. Due to the complexity of the vegetable oil composition with respect to their FA distribution, the situation is not as simple as pure triacylglycerol molecules. Moreover, there is significant influence of the nature, relative abundance, and orientation of C=C bonds on the wax appearance temperatures. Further, presence of other saturated short-chain-length FAs in vegetable oil structure is found to affect the crystallization process. Statistical analysis of NMR-derived vegetable oil structure support the influence of several predictor variables associated with FA unsaturation on the crystalhzation process. 

As previously described (see p. 13), fatty acids are monocarboxylic acids that typically contain hydrocarbon chains of variable lengths (between 12 and 20 carbons). The structures and names of several common fatty acids are illustrated in Table ILL Fatty acids are important components of several types of lipid molecules. They occur primarily in triacylglycerols and several types of membrane-bound lipid molecules. 

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