Acetic acid esters of mono- and diglycerides

Ingredient included in the list of European food additives as  E472a with the functions of emulsifier and stabilizer used by the food industry. 

The name describes the structure of the molecules. 

• "Acetic acid esters" refers to the fact that these substances are esters, which are compounds formed by the reaction of an acid (in this case, acetic acid) with an alcohol (in this case, the alcohol group in the mono- and diglycerides).
•  "Mono- and diglycerides of fatty acids" refers to the fact that these substances are derived from glycerol, a type of alcohol, that has been reacted with one or two fatty acids.

The synthesis process takes place in different steps:

• Step 1: Raw Material Preparation. The raw materials for the synthesis of acetic acid esters of mono- and diglycerides of fatty acids are acetic acid and mono- and diglycerides of fatty acids.
• Step 2: Esterification. The mono- and diglycerides of fatty acids are reacted with acetic acid in the presence of a catalyst to form the esters. This reaction is known as esterification.
• Step 3: Purification. The resulting acetic acid esters of mono- and diglycerides of fatty acids are then purified to remove any unreacted acetic acid and mono- and diglycerides of fatty acids. This can involve a variety of techniques, including distillation and filtration.
• Step 4: Drying. The purified acetic acid esters of mono- and diglycerides of fatty acids are dried to remove any remaining solvent.

The complete list:

• E472a Acetic acid esters of mono- and diglycerides of fatty acids
• E472b Lactic acid esters of mono- and diglycerides
• E472c Citric acid esters of mono- and diglycerides
• E472d Tartaric acid esters of mono- and diglycerides
• E472e Diacetyltartaric acid esters of mono- and diglycerides
• E472f Mixed esters (tartaric, acetic) of mono- and diglycerides