Phenylethyl esters of fatty acids for the analytical resolution of petroselinate and oleate

2-Phenylethyl esters of fatty acids were prepared readily by esterification of free fatty acids or transesterification of other lipids. Compared with methyl esters, phenylethyl esters greatly improve the resolution of oleate and petroselinate by both gas and high-performance liquid chromatography, and the ultraviolet absorption of the phenylethyl esters facilitates detection of the derivatives by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) ultraviolet detectors. The fatty acid compositions of corn and soybean oil obtained by analysis of phenylethyl esters agreed with those obtained with methyl esters. The phenylethyl esters were resolved and eluted on C-18 HPLC columns with much smaller solvent volumes than those reported for other aromatic esters.