Patent ID: 8178706

Claim:
A process for forming a mixture of fatty acids and fatty acid esters from a starting material containing soap and alcohol, wherein the alcohol is methanol, ethanol, 1-propanol or a polyhydric alcohol or a mixture of several alcohols, characterized by adding a metal-ion forming agent into the starting material, said metal-ion forming agent transforming the soap into a precipitate, to produce a mixture containing an insoluble phase and a liquid phase, separating the insoluble phase from the liquid phase, and adding an acid into the insoluble phase to form a fatty acid, and forming a fatty acid ester by adding a monohydric alcohol and an acid catalyst to the acid-containing insoluble phase to form a fatty acid ester, whereby two phases are formed, an aqueous phase and an organic phase, or by adding first an acid and then adding a monohydric alcohol and an acid catalyst into at least a portion of the formed fatty acid to esterify the fatty acid.