| Abstract: | Autoxidation of Saturated Fatty Acids IV: Oxygen Consumption and the Formation of Peroxides in the Oxidation of Lauric and Stearic Acids and their Methyl Esters The investigation showed a reproducible course of oxygen uptake and peroxide formation. In the oxidation of free acids the oxygen uptake was considerably higher than the corresponding peroxide content. The amounts of peroxides determined are so small that secondary reactions may be assumed to occur at relative ease under the experimental conditions. The higher content of peroxide compounds in the oxidation of methyl esters compared to that in the oxidation of free acids indicated a hindrance of the subsequent reactions which are associated with the decomposition of the peroxides. The experiments showed that initially an unusually large part of the absorbed oxygen is consumed in the formation of peroxides. The formation of split products can therefore occur here only with great difficulty in contrast to the case of free acids. |
