How Does a Hydrogenator Work?

Hydrogenation is the process where hydrogen atoms bind to the double bond of a compound, facilitating its conversion to a single bond, in the presence of a catalyst. ... Hydrogenation is commonly used during the manufacturing of food products where unsaturated fats and oil are converted to saturated fats and oils.

What does a Hydrogenator do?

Hydrogenation is typically used to improve the flavor stability and keeping qualities of oil. An unhydrogenated oil can turn rancid because its unsaturated carbon atoms are free to bond to oxygen atoms from the air, forming peroxides, which give rancid fats their “off” flavor.

How does hydrogenation of fats work?

Hydrogenation is a chemical process that adds hydrogen to the unsaturated bonds on the FA chains attached to the TAG backbone. In this way, an unsaturated fat can be turned into a saturated fat and increase its melting point (List and King, 2006).