Reactions of conjugated fatty acids. VIII. Dibasic acids by hydrogenation and oxidative cleavage

Summary Conjugated linoleic acid can be hydrogenated as sodium soap in an aqueous or ethylene glycol solution with commercial nickel catalysts. Under suitable conditions the acid is reduced predominantly to monounsaturated acids with only a slight increase in saturated acids. An alkali-conjugation reaction mixture may be hydrogenated without isolating the conjugated acids. One set of conditions found suitable for hydrogenation is as follows: 10 g. of conjugated linoleic acid, 7 g. of sodium hydroxide, 250 ml. of water, and 0.05 g. of nickel placed under 40 p.s.i. hydrogen pressure and heated at 140°C. for 1 hour. Acids prepared from this reaction mixture have an iodine value of about 90. Oxidation and chromatographic analyses of the resultant dibasic acids indicate that with alkali-conjugated linoleic acid, 1,2, 1,4, and 3,4 addition of hydrogen take place with equal ease. The reduced acids contain 66%trans acids. Withtrans,trans conjugated linoleic acid, 1,4 addition takes place to a greater extent that 1,2 and 3,4 addition, and the reduced acids are allrans. Presented at the fall meeting, American Oil Chemists' Society, Cincinnati, O., September 30–October 2, 1957. Part VII is in press, Journal of Organic Chemistry.