Lipase‐mediated acidolysis of butteroil with free conjugated linoleic acid in a packed bed reactor

Acidolysis of butteroil with free conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) was studied in a packed bed reactor containing an immobilized Candida antarctica (fraction B) lipase. Kinetic data were used to develop quantitative reversible rate expressions of the general Michaelis–Menten form that also incorporate a term for first‐order deactivation of the enzyme. The extent of incorporation of CLA in the triacylglycerols of butteroil was characterized for reactions carried out at several temperatures (namely 45°, 50°, and 55°C) with different weight ratios of butteroil to CLA (namely 10:1 and 2:1). At the optimum operating temperature of 50°C, similar levels of incorporation of CLA (60% to 85%) were achieved at low space times (<3 h) for both 10:1 and 2:1 (w/w) ratios of butteroil to CLA. © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Biotechnol Bioeng 83: 608–617, 2003.