If I remember correctly, the oleic acid present in oils is not in its acid form, but rather part of triglycerides. If it was present as a free acid, the oils would probably slightly burn if consuming them.
Klaus, I trust your mind on this one. maybe it would be helpful if you could explain this in layman's terms. Maybe that is why a good EVOO has a peppery burning sensation if you slurp or drink it solo. Fatty Acids: Olive Oil is a complex compound made of fatty acids, vitamins, volatile components, water soluble components and microscopic bits of olive. Primary fatty acids are Oleic and linoleic acid with a small amount of linolenic acid.
A fatty acid has the general formula: CH3(CH2)nCOOH where n is typically an even number between 12 and 22
If no double bonds are present the molecule is called a saturated fatty acid.
If a chain contains double bonds, it is called an unsaturated fatty acid.
A single double bond makes a monounsaturated fatty acid
Oils with more that one double bond are called polyunsaturated fatty acids.
Oleic acid is monounsaturated and makes up 55-85% of olive oil (C17H35COOH) or CH3-(CH2)7-CH=CH-(CH2)7-COOH also known as oleate.
The IUPAC name would be cis-9-octadecenoate
Linoleic is polyunsaturated and makes up about 9% (C17H29COOH) or CH3-(CH2)4-CH=CH-CH2-CH=CH-(CH2)7-COOH
Linolenic, which is polyunsaturated, makes up 0-1.5%
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