| abstract |
A process to produce cholesterol from fish oil is described, which includes the following steps: (a) distilling fish oil in a vacuum distillation column to obtain a first residue and a first distillate, (b) distilling the first distillate in a vacuum distillation column to obtain a second distillate and a second residue, (c) contacting the second residue with an alkali to produce a saponified mixture, (d) contacting the saponified mixture with a non-organic solvent polar or a mixture of non-polar organic solvents to produce an organic phase and an aqueous phase, (e) separating the organic phase from the aqueous phase, (f) cooling the organic phase to form a solid phase and a liquid phase, and ( g) separating the solid phase from the organic phase, wherein the separated solid phase includes cholesterol. |