Integrated multidimensional and comprehensive 2D GC analysis of fatty acid methyl esters

Fatty acid methyl ester (FAME) profiling in complex fish oil and milk fat samples was studied using integrated comprehensive 2D GC (GC × GC) and multidimensional GC (MDGC). Using GC × GC, FAME compounds – cis‐ and trans‐isomers, and essential fatty acid isomers – ranging from C18 to C22 in fish oil and C18 in milk fat were clearly displayed in contour plot format according to structural properties and patterns, further identified based on authentic standards. Incompletely resolved regions were subjected to MDGC, with Cn (n = 18, 20) zones transferred to a ²D column. Elution behavior of C18 FAME on various ²D column phases (ionic liquids IL111, IL100, IL76, and modified PEG) was evaluated. Individual isolated Cn zones demonstrated about four‐fold increased peak capacities. The IL100 provided superior separation, good peak shape, and utilization of elution space. For milk fat‐derived FAME, the ²D chromatogram revealed at least three peaks corresponding to C18:1, more than six peaks for cis/trans‐C18:2 isomers, and two peaks for C18:3. More than 17 peaks were obtained for the C20 region of fish oil‐derived FAMEs using MDGC, compared with ten peaks using GC × GC. The MDGC strategy is useful for improved FAME isomer separation and confirmation.     

Evaluation of a rapid method for preparation of fatty acid methyl esters for analysis by gas-liquid chromatography

The major limitation to fatty acid analysis by gas-liquid chromatography is associated with preparation of fatty acid methyl esters (FAME). In the present study, FAME preparations were made from plant oils (corn, olive, sunflower), sunflower oil margarine, lard and various animal tissue fats by a rapid transesterification involving tetramethylammonium hydroxide in methanol, and also by a longer conventional saponification-esterification method. Fats from animal (beef, mutton, pork) adipose tissues were extracted by a simpler modified procedure and also by the Folch method prior to the rapid and the conventional FAME preparations, respectively. FAME analysis on a gas-liquid chromatograph equipped with a Silar 10C glass capillary column indicated similar fatty acid composition of a given fat or oil, whether FAME was prepared by the rapid or the longer conventional method. The data obtained by both methods were very highly correlated for all the fats (r = 0.9895 - 0.9999). However, the rapid method showed a tendency for enhanced recoveries of lower chain fatty acids (e.g. 14:0), and also of unsaturated C18 isomers. Possibly, losses of fatty acids that occurred during the lengthy fat extraction, fatty acid esterification or ether-evaporation FAME concentration steps (conventional method) were minimised by the single transesterification step (rapid method). This rapid transesterification method appears to be an attractive alternative to FAME preparation from a wide variety of different fats for gas-liquid chromatographic analysis.     

生物柴油调合对其低温流动性能的改善

为了了解生物柴油中脂肪酸甲酯组成对其低温流动性能的影响,探索改善其流动性能的方法,以大豆油、花生油和牛油为原料合成了大豆油甲酯、花生油甲酯和牛油甲酯,测定了它们的脂肪酸甲酯组成和低温流动性能.结果表明,长碳链饱和脂肪酸甲酯的含量是影响生物柴油低温流动性能的主要因素.通过对混合生物柴油流动性能的测定,发现可以通过不同来源...     

Analysis of thermal,oxidative and cold flow properties of methyl and ethyl esters prepared from soybean and mustard oils

Oilseed crop with high oil content and promising ecological adaptability are potential sources for competitive biodiesel production. This study investigates the scope of utilizing biodiesel development through the methyl and ethyl ester from soybean and mustard oil as an alternative fuel. Methyl and ethyl esters of oils having different fatty acids compositions such as soybean (SOME and SOEE) and mustard oil (MUME and MUEE) were prepared by transesterification with methanol and ethanol in the presence of an alkali-KOH catalyst. The gas chromatographic (GC) analysis of oil samples revealed that primary fatty acid composition in soybean oil was linoleic acid (C_18:2, 51.93%), followed by oleic acid (C_18:1, 22.82%), palmitic acid (C_16:0, 11.56%), linolenic acid (C_18:3, 5.95%) and stearic acid (C_18:0, 4.32%). Whereas, the main components in mustard oil were erucic acid (C_22:1, 32.81%), oleic acid (C_18:1, 24.98%), eicosenoic acid (C_20:1, 10.44%), linolenic acid (C_18:3, 8.61%) and palmitic acid (C_16:0, 2.80%). The physicochemical properties (acid value, iodine value, calorific value, flash point, pour point etc.) of methyl and ethyl ester samples were estimated and found to be within the acceptable range of ASTM D6751 standards specifications. The prepared esters and oil samples were examined for cold flow properties by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). Results revealed better cold flow properties for MUME (−2.55 °C) and MUEE (−3.10 °C) than SOME (3.21 °C) and SOEE (1.83 °C) due to more unsaturated fatty acid content in MU. Thermal and oxidative stability of samples was determined by thermogravimetric analysis (TG) and differential thermal analysis (DTA). The thermal and oxidative stability ranking of the samples was in the order of oil > methyl esters > ethyl esters.

     

Fatty acids by high-performance liquid chromatography and evaporative light-scattering detector

A high-performance liquid chromatographic (HPLC) separation method with an evaporative light-scattering detector (ELSD) has been developed for the separation and quantitative analysis of fatty acid methyl esters (FAME) in three different oils. Reverse-phased C18 HPLC separation of 13 FAME is achieved using a methanol/water eluent mixture. The retention times (RT) reflect the elution behavior of these compounds on C18 reversed-phase HPLC. The proposed method is tested on: soybean oil (Glycine max L.) as reference sample, rice bran oil (Oryza sativa L.), pumpkin seed oil (Cucurbita pepo L.) and algal oil (Arthrospira platensis Nordst.).     

Improved identification of conjugated linoleic acid isomers using silver-ion HPLC separations

Silver-ion high-performance liquid chromatography (Ag+-HPLC) has been shown to be effective in the resolution of most of the isomers of conjugated octadecadienoic acids (18:2), also known as conjugated linoleic acid (CLA). The CLA isomers identified in natural fats from ruminants are a mixture of numerous positional and geometric isomers from 7,9- to 12,14-18:2. Ag+-HPLC separates both geometric (trans,trans < cis/trans < cis,cis) and positional CLA isomers using the mobile phase hexane/acetonitrile (99.9:0.1). The elution volumes for the CLA isomers were not only affected by the concentration of acetonitrile (in the prepared mobile phase) but also with successive runs during the day using a prepared mobile phase batch, due to the partial solubility of acetonitrile in hexane. However, this drift does not affect the relative resolution of the CLA isomers. The addition of diethyl ether to the mobile phase partly stabilizes the solvent mixture. In order to facilitate the interpretation of Ag-+HPLC chromatograms, the relative retention volumes (RRV) were calculated for each CLA isomer. Toluene was added to all the test portions and served as an estimator of dead volume, whereas the elution of the ubiquitous 9c,11t-CLA isomer was chosen as unity (1.00). Expressing the elution of all the CLA isomers as their RRV greatly helped to standardize each CLA isomer, resulting in relatively small coefficients of variation (% CV) for the trans,trans (<1.5%) and cis/trans (<0.5%) CLA isomers. The identification of the CLA isomers was further facilitated by synthesis of authentic CLA isomers. All the geometric CLA fatty acid methyl esters (FAME) from positions 6,8- to 13,15-CLA were commercially available or synthesized by a combination of partial hydrazine reduction of known polyunsaturated fatty acids followed by alkali isomerization, isolation of products, and further iodine-catalyzed geometric isomerization. Based on expressing the elution volume as RRV and the availability of the synthetic CLA isomers, a unique reversal of the elution order of the c/t CLA isomers was found. It is also proposed that the retention times of CLA isomers by gas chromatography (GC) should be expressed as their relative retention times (RRT) relative to methyl gamma-linoleneate. The availability of CLA reference materials and the application of RRV and RRT to Ag+-HPLC and GC separations, respectively, will greatly improve in the identifications of CLA isomers.     

Comparison of two gas–liquid chromatograph columns for the analysis of fatty acids in ruminant meat

Two gas–liquid chromatograph capillary columns for the analysis of fatty acids (FA) in ruminant fat are compared. Those columns are the CP-Sil 88 of 100 m long with a highly polar stationary phase and the Omegawax 250 of 30 m long with a stationary phase of intermediate polarity. Fatty acid methyl ester (FAME) patterns of branched-chain, cis and trans octadecenoate isomers, as well as conjugated and non-conjugated 18:2 and 18:3 isomers are fairly different between columns, even though most of the FAME could be separated on either column. However, the CP-Sil 88 showed better resolution of 18:1 isomers than Omegawax 250. The analysis of 96 samples of ruminant meat fat in both chromatographic systems showed that averages obtained for total FA content and for most of the individual FA did not differ between columns. Moreover, regression analysis of Omegawax and CP-Sil 88 data is highly correlated. Quantitative differences between chromatographic systems were detected for samples containing more than 66 mg fatty acids per gram of muscle dry matter.     

Cis-trans isomerization of polyunsaturated fatty acid residues in phospholipids catalyzed by thiyl radicals.

Phospholipids containing trans-unsaturated fatty acid residues are the major products of the thiyl radical attack on L-alpha-phosphatidylcholine from soybean lecithin in homogeneous solution or in liposomes (LUVET). Thiyl radicals act as the catalyst for the cis-trans isomerization, and the number of catalytic cycles depends on the reaction conditions. The presence of approximately 0.2 mM oxygen does not influence the reaction outcome but accelerates the efficiency of cis-trans isomerization in homogeneous solution. Under these conditions, the PUFA peroxidation is found to be unimportant. A detailed study of the isomerization of methyl linoleate including product studies indicates the formation of a small amount of conjugated dienes that act as inhibitors. Indeed, all-trans-retinol substantially retarded the isomerization process.     

Acetonitrile covalent adduct chemical ionization tandem mass spectrometry of non-methylene-interrupted pentaene fatty acid methyl esters

Acetonitrile covalent adduct chemical ionization tandem mass spectrometry (CACIMS/MS) has shown to be an efficient method for the identification of double‐bond position in homoallylic, conjugated and several polyene non‐methylene‐interrupted (NMI) fatty acid methyl esters. However, it has not been thoroughly evaluated for NMI highly unsaturated fatty acids (HUFA) with more than four double bonds. Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA)‐rich single cell oil (DHASCO^®; Martek Biosciences, Corp.) was partially hydrogenated (partially hydrogenated DHASCO; PHDO) producing ten novel 22:5 and 22:6 HUFA isomers. In single‐stage MS, the ratio of [M+54]⁺/[M+54‐32]⁺ for the 22:5 and 22:6 isomers indicated the presence of homoallylic or partially conjugated double‐bond systems. The CACIMS/MS spectra revealed six 22:5 isomers with diagnostic ions corresponding to the homoallylic 22:5n‐6 and 22:5n‐3 isomers, and four distinct NMI 22:5 isomers. Diagnostic ions for four 22:6 isomers were identical to the native DHA illustrating that CACIMS/MS is sensitive to double‐bond position but not geometry. Three gas chromatography (GC) peaks for partially conjugated 22:6 isomers were also detected and clearly distinguishable from homoallylic 22:6 isomers, but their CACIMS/MS spectra did not yield prominent ions indicative of double‐bond position, possibly due to co‐elution. Overall, CACIMS/MS was effective for determining double‐bond position in NMI 22:5 isomers. Further investigations are warranted to evaluate and determine fragmentation patterns for partially conjugated and NMI 22:6 HUFA. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Methods for analysis of conjugated linoleic acids and trans-18:1 isomers in dairy fats by using a combination of gas chromatography, silver-ion thin-layer chromatography/gas chromatography, and silver-ion liquid chromatography

Conjugated linoleic acids (CLA) are octadecadienoic acids (18:2) that have a conjugated double-bond system. Interest in these compounds has expanded since CLA were found to be associated with a number of physiological and pathological responses such as cancer, metastases, atherosclerosis, diabetes, immunity, and body fat/protein composition. The main sources of these conjugated fatty acids are dairy fats. Rumen bacteria convert polyunsaturated fatty acids, especially linoleic and linolenic acids, to CLA and numerous trans- containing mono- and diunsaturated fatty acids. It has been established that an additional route of CLA synthesis in ruminants and monogastric animals, including humans, occurs via delta9 desaturation of the trans-18:1 isomers. To date, a total of 6 positional CLA isomers have been found in dairy fats, each occurring in 4 geometric forms (cis,trans; trans,cis; cis,cis; and trans,trans) for a total of 24. All of these CLA isomers can be resolved only by a combination of gas chromatography (GC), using 100 m highly polar capillary columns, and silver-ion liquid chromatography, using 3 of these 25 cm columns in series. Complete analysis of all the trans-18:1 isomers requires prior isolation of trans monoenes by silver-ion thin-layer chromatography (TLC), followed by GC analysis using the same 100 m capillary columns operated at low temperatures starting from 120 degrees C. These analytical techniques are required to assess the purity of commercial CLA preparations, because their purity will affect the interpretation of any physiological and/or biochemical response obtained. Prior assessment of CLA preparations by TLC is also recommended to determine the presence of any other impurities. The availability of pure CLA isomers will permit the evaluation and analysis of individual CLA isomers for their nutritional and biological activity in model systems, animals, and humans. These techniques are also essential to evaluate dairy fats for their content of specific CLA isomers and to help design experimental diets to increase the level of the desired CLA isomers in dairy fats. These improved techniques are further required to evaluate the CLA profile in monogastric animals fed commercial CLA preparations for CLA enrichment of animal products. This is particularly important because absorption and metabolism will alter the ingested-CLA profile in the animal fed.     

Clean synthesis of biodiesel over solid acid catalysts of sulfonated mesopolymers

FDU-15-SO₃H, a solid acid material prepared from the sulfonation of FDU-15 mesoporous polymer, has been demonstrated to serve as an efficient catalyst in the esterification of palmitic acid with methanol as well as in the transesterification of fatty acid-edible oil mixture. FDU-15-SO₃H achieved an acid conversion of 99.0% when the esterification was carried out at 343 K with a methanol/palmitic acid molar ratio of 6:1 and 5 wt% catalyst loading. It was capable of giving 99.0% yield of fatty acid methyl esters (FAME) when the transesterification of soybean oil was performed at 413 K and the methanol/oil weight ratio of 1:1. FDU-15-SO₃H was further applied to the transesterification/esterification of the oil mixtures with a varying ratio of soybean oil to palmitic acid, which simulated the feedstock with a high content of free fatty acids. The yield of FAME reached 95% for the oil mixtures containing 30 wt% palmitic acid. This indicated the sulfonated mesopolymer was a potential catalyst for clean synthesis of fuel alternative of biodiesel from the waste oil without further purification.     

Fast Biodiesel Production with One-Phase Reaction

The feasibility of fatty acid methyl ester (FAME) as a co-solvent used to increase the mass transfer between oil and methanol was investigated. FAME, as the co-solvent, does not require additional separation after the reaction because it is the end product of the reaction. To examine intermediate phenomena during the transesterification of soybean oil, the agitation speed was controlled at a slow rate. When the molar ratio of oil to methanol was 1:6 at 0.8wt.% of KOH to oil, oil was at the bottom layer, and methanol and the catalyst were at the top layer. Under the slow agitation process, the contact surface became initially darkened with the production of FAME and glycerol. After a few minutes, the entire top layer became dark. The top layer, containing methanol, KOH, FAME, and glycerol, fell to the bottom layer and then formed the one-phase system. When 0, 5, and 10 wt.% of FAME to oil was initially introduced to the reaction mixture, the FAME content rapidly increased with the FAME concentration level. After forming the one-phase system, the rate of increase of the FAME content was very slow. The time required for the formation of the one-phase system decreased with the amount of FAME and KOH and with temperature.     

Effect of temperature and composition on density,viscosity and thermal conductivity of fatty acid methyl esters from soybean,castor and Jatropha curcas oils

This work is focused on experimental determination of density, viscosity and thermal conductivity as a function of temperature and composition for fatty acid methyl esters (FAME) from soybean, castor and Jatropha curcas oils. Results show that an increase in temperature, over the range of (273 to 363) K, resulted in a decrease of all properties studied. FAME from soybean and J. curcas oils presented similar rheological behaviour, while FAME from castor oil presented higher values for density and viscosity. Density, dynamic viscosity and thermal conductivity data for all systems obtained here were correlated using empirical equations with good agreement between experimental and calculated values. Experimental data presented here may be useful as a database for specification purposes and equipment design and plant operation in the biodiesel industry.     

Catalytic conversions in green aqueous media: Part 4. Selective hydrogenation of polyunsaturated methyl esters of vegetable oils for upgrading biodiesel

This study deals with the influence of operating parameters on the selective hydrogenation of crude polyunsaturated methyl esters of linseed, sunflower and soybean oils in order to achieve high selectivities up to 79.8 mol% of monounsaturated (C18:1) fatty acid methyl esters (FAME) which is 1st generation biodiesel of increased oxidative stability, energy and environmental performance at a low pour point employing water-soluble Rh/TPPTS catalytic complexes [TPPTS = P(C₆H₄-m-SO₃Na)₃] in green aqueous/organic two-phase systems. This study also discloses the great potential of biphasic selective catalytic hydrogenation to produce 2nd generation biodiesel from polyunsaturated FAME of alternative, non-food oil feedstocks which are originally not suitable for biodiesel production or give poor quality biodiesel but combine the advantage that they would not affect food production. Because the mixture of methyl esters of linseed oil mainly consists of C18:3 FAME it constitutes a good model to investigate the effects of parameters on the whole spectrum of the stepwise hydrogenation: C18:3 (linolenates) → C18:2 (linoleates) → C18:1 (oleates)  C18:0 (stearate) and to obtain first information on the selective hydrogenation of alternative, non-food oils with a high C18:3 FAME content to make them suitable for 2nd generation biodiesel formulations.     

Isolation and structural analysis of the cyclic fatty acid monomers formed from eicosapentaenoic and docosahexaenoic acids during fish oil deodorization

Long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (LC-PUFAs) present in fish oils are thermolabile molecules. Among the degradation reactions encountered, thermal cyclization occurs during refining or other heat treatments. Numerous studies have been carried out in the past to quantify and determine the structures of cyclic fatty acid monomers (CFAMs) formed from oleic, linoleic and linolenic acids in heated vegetable oils. Recently, much attention have been given to LC-PUFAs due to their potential health benefits. However, data on quantification of CFAMs formed from these fatty acids, such as eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA, cis-5, cis-8, cis-11, cis-14, cis-17 20:5) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA, cis-4, cis-7, cis-10, cis-13, cis-16, cis-19 22:6), the two main LC-PUFAs in fish oils, are scarce. In the present study, structural analyses of CFAMs formed from EPA and DHA during the deodorization of fish oil are presented. Fish oil sample was deodorized at 250 degrees C for 3 h under a pressure of 1.5 mbar in a laboratory deodorizer. The CFAMs formed during heat treatment of fish oil were isolated by a combination of saponification, esterification, urea fractionations and column chromatography. Structural analyses of C20- and C22-CFAMs were achieved by gas-chromatography electronic-ionization mass-spectrometry (GC-EI-MS) of their 4,4-dimethyloxazoline (DMOX) derivatives. We identified seven out of 13 possible structures of hydrogenated CFAMs formed from EPA, and nine out of 16 possible structures of CFAM formed from DHA. Major CFAMs from both EPA and DHA were cyclohexyl isomers. All possible cyclohexyl isomers were found but only nine out of 18 of the cyclopentyl isomers were present in concentration sufficient for identification. Chemical mechanisms involved in the formation of polyunsaturated LC-PUFAs have been investigated. The results have shown that general principle involved in the cyclization of LC-PUFAs is same as that for the thermal cyclization of oleic, linoleic and alpha-linolenic acids.     

Separation of conjugated linoleic acid methyl esters by silver-ion high performance liquid chromatography in semi-preparative mode

Silver-ion HPLC (Ag-HPLC) has been utilized to separate a variety of unsaturated fatty acid methyl esters (FAMEs) by configuration, location or number of olefinic or acetylenic bonds. Two analytical Ag-HPLC columns connected in series and an isocratic solvent system of acetonitrile (ACN) in hexane were used to fractionate 10-15 mg samples of a mixture of two deuterium-labeled isomers of conjugated linoleic acid (Z9.E11- and Z9,Z11-octadecadienoic acid-17,17,18,18-d4). "Baseline" (> 95%) resolution of the two isomers, which decreased with increasing weights of sample injected, was maintained by careful adjustment of the percentage of ACN in the ACN/hexane solvent system. Chemical purities of the isolated FAME were > 96%.     

Biodiesel Production via the Transesterification of Soybean Oil Using Waste Starfish (Asterina pectinifera)

Calcined waste starfish was used as a base catalyst for the production of biodiesel from soybean oil for the first time. A batch reactor was used for the transesterification reaction. The thermal characteristics and crystal structures of the waste starfish were investigated by thermo-gravimetric analysis and X-ray diffraction. The biodiesel yield was determined by measuring the content of fatty acid methyl esters (FAME). The calcination temperature appeared to be a very important parameter affecting the catalytic activity. The starfish-derived catalyst calcined at 750 °C or higher exhibited high activity for the transesterification reaction. The FAME content increased with increasing catalyst dose and methanol-over-oil ratio.     

Comparison of GC stationary phases for the separation of fatty acid methyl esters in biodiesel fuels

The fatty acid methyl ester (FAME) content of biodiesel fuels has traditionally been determined using gas chromatography with a polar stationary phase. In this study, a direct comparison of the separation of FAMEs present in various biodiesel samples on three polar stationary phases and one moderately polar stationary phase (with comparable column dimensions) was performed. Retention on each column was based on solubility in and polarity of the phase. Quantitative metrics describing the resolution of important FAME pairs indicate high resolution on all polar columns, yet the best resolution, particularly of geometric isomers, is achieved on the cyanopropyl column. In addition, the separation of four C18 monounsaturated isomers was optimized and the elution order determined on each column. FAME composition of various biodiesel fuel types was determined on each column to illustrate (1) chemical differences in biodiesels produced from different feedstocks and (2) chemical similarities in biodiesels of the same feedstock type produced in different locations and harvest seasons.     

The Preparation and Characterization of Conjugated Linolenic Acid

Conjugated Linolenic Acid (CLN) has recently been shown to have a more strong cytotoxic effect on various human tumor cell lines than CLA. In CLN, all the three double bonds are conjugated, whereas they are methylene-interrupted in LN. Some seed oil, such as tung oil and pomegranate seed oil, principally consist of CLN, accounting for 76.5% and 75.5%, respectively.CLN can be characterized using the combination of gas chromatography (GC), highperformance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and UV /VIS spectrophotomea-ic analysis. GC can separate the CLN from other fatty acids and HPLC can separate the individual CLN isomers.The conjugated triene formation has a maximum absorbency at 268 nm and the conjugated diene formation has an absorbency at 235 nm in UV spectrum.CLN was prepared from linseed oil by isomerization reaction in our present study. By treating at was isomerized and the product was purified by recrystallizing in the methanol. The GC and UV /VIS spectrophotometric analysis were used to characterize the obtained products. It was found that the a-LN in the linseed oil was converted to the corresponding conjugated diene acids and CLN. The GC analysis also showed that there formed about 20% CLN when reacting for 10h with 40% KOH/ethylene glycol.     

Analysis of triacylglycerol and fatty acid isomers by low-temperature silver-ion high performance liquid chromatography with acetonitrile in hexane as solvent: limitations of the methodology

Silver ion HPLC (Ag-HPLC), utilizing columns containing silver ions bonded to a silica substrate and acetonitrile in hexane as solvent, has proven to be a powerful technology for the analysis of geometric (cis or trans) or positional fatty acids, fatty acid ester (primarily methyl ester; FAME), or triacylglycerol (TAG) isomers. Previous studies had demonstrated that, unlike gas chromatography, samples eluted more rapidly at lower temperatures (at 20 degrees C versus 40 degrees C, for example). A low-temperature bath [dual-column Ag-HPLC; isocratic solvent systems of 0.3 to 0.7% acetonitrile (ACN) in hexane] was utilized to study the application of this system at low (below 0 degrees C) temperatures for analysis of FAME (zero to six double bonds) and TAG [SSS, OOO and LLL, where S=stearic acid (18:0), O=oleic acid (9c-18:1), and L=linoleic acid (9c, 12c-18:2)] standards. While FAME elution times continued to decrease from 0 degrees C to -10 degrees C, they began to increase at -20 degrees C. A similar situation was noted for the TAG isomers, except that retention times began to increase below 0 degrees C. The lower temperature limit of the Ag-HPLC/ACN in hexane system is thus ca. -25 degrees C. Increasing sample elution times and pump head pressures upon sample injection were noted at temperatures of -25 degrees C to -40 degrees C. Equilibration times at each temperature could be reduced to ca. 15 min without loss of resolution and with retention times of +/-2%. Temperature, rather than solvent composition, can therefore be utilized with the Ag-HPLC/ACN in hexane solvent system to optimize elution times and resolution(s) of FAME and TAG isomers.