Fatty acids (FAs) are a very important group of raw materials for chemical industry, and the technology of separating or purifying the FAs from the reaction product mixture has always been the hotspot of research. Membrane processes for separation of FAs are being increasingly reported. Compared with conventional FAs separation methods, membrane separation has the advantages of low energy consumption, system compactness, high separation efficiency, easy scale-up, high available surface area per unit volume and low working temperatures, thereby attracting considerable attention of many researchers. In this regards, this paper critically reviewed the developments of methods for FAs separation and purification, and the future prospects of coupling membrane technology with hydrolysis for enhanced production of FAs.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.