according to the equation--

C_{3}H_{5}(OR)_{3} + 3H.OH = C_{3}H_{5}(OH)_{3} + 3ROH.

The fatty acids and glycerol formed distil over with the excess of
steam, and by arranging a series of condensers, the former, which
condense first, are obtained almost alone in the earlier ones, and an
aqueous solution of glycerine in the later ones. This method of
preparation of fatty acids is extensively used in France for the
production of stearine for candle-manufacture, but the resulting
product is liable to be dark coloured, and to yield a dark soap. To
expose the acids to heat for a minimum of time, and so prevent
discoloration, Mannig has patented (Germ. Pat. 160,111) a process
whereby steam under a pressure of 8 to 10 atmospheres is projected
against a baffle plate mounted in a closed vessel, where it mixes with
the fat or oil in the form of a spray, the rate of hydrolysis being
thereby, it is claimed, much increased.

Simpson (Fr. Pat. 364,587) has attempted to accelerate further the
decomposition by subjecting oils or fats to the simultaneous action of
heat and electricity. Superheated steam is passed into the oil, in which
are immersed the two electrodes connected with a dynamo or battery, the
temperature not being allowed to exceed 270 deg. C.

II. _Action of Enzymes._--It was discovered by Muntz in 1871 (_Annales
de Chemie_, xxii.) that during germination of castor seeds a quantity of
fatty acid was developed in the seeds, which he suggested might be due
to the decomposition of the oil by the embryo acting as a ferment.
Schutzenberger in 1876 showed that when castor seeds are steeped in
water, fatty acids and glycerol are liberated, and attributed this to
the hydrolytic action of an enzyme present in the seeds. No evidence of
the existence of such a ferment was adduced, however, till 1890, when
Green (_Roy. Soc. Proc._, 48, 370) definitely proved the presence in the
seeds of a ferment capable of splitting up the oil into fatty acid and
glycerol.

The first experimenters to suggest any industrial application of this
enzymic hydrolysis were Connstein, Hoyer and Wartenburg, who
(_Berichte_, 1902, 35, pp. 3988-4006) published the results of a lengthy
investigation of the whole subject. They found that tallow, cotton-seed,
palm, olive, almond, and many other oils, were readily hydrolysed by the
castor-seed ferment in the presence of dilute acid, but that cocoa-nut
and palm-kernel oils only decomposed with difficulty