ACID SAPONIFICATION.
While it is possible to saponify fats and oils in an autoclave with the addition of acid to the fat, unless a specially-constructed digestor is built, the action of the acid on the metal from which the autoclave is constructed prohibits its use. The acid saponification is therefore carried out by another method.
The method of procedure for acid saponification, therefore, is to first purify the fats with dilute acid as already described. The purified, hot or warm, dry fat is then run to a specially-built acidifier or a lead-lined tank and from 4 per cent. to 6 per cent. of concentrated sulfuric acid added to the fat, depending upon its character, the degree of saponification required, temperature and time of saponification. A temperature of 110 degrees C. is maintained and the mass mixed from four to six hours. The tank is then allowed to settle out the tar formed during the saponification, and the fatty acids run off to another tank and boiled up about three times with one-third the amount of water. The water thus obtained contains the glycerine, and after neutralization is concentrated.