A facile, versatile procedure for the preparation of fatty acid esters suitable for glc or hplc analyses

Abstract

The preparation of fatty acid methyl esters for glc analyses and of various aryl esters for hplc analyses has traditionally been carried out in totally unrelated operations. This paper draws attention to the use of fatty acid – trifluoroacetic acid mixed anhydrides which may be directly and efficiently converted into either type of ester. The utility of the method was demonstrated by the preparation of a series of methyl, 2-naphthyl, and vanillin fatty acid esters. The spectral characterization of some aryl fatty acid esters is recorded.