Abstract:Squalene, tocopherols and phytosterols were simultaneously extracted from soybean oil deodorizer distillate (SODD) by esterification - high vacuum distillation. The effects of esterification conditions (the amounts of methanol, catalyst concentrated sulfuric acid,and reaction time) on esterification rate, the content of squalene and tocopherols were investigated. The optimum esterification conditions were as follows: concentrated sulfuric acid 0.5%, molar ration of methanol to oil 10∶1, temperature 70℃ and time 120min, the esterification rate of SODD could reach 98.2%, tocopherol and squalene retention rates were 97.7% and 97.5% respectively. The esterification solution was crystallized and filtered to obtain crude phytosterols. The filtrate was further treated by high vacuum distillation to extract fatty acid methyl ester, squalene and tocopherol. The squalene, tocopherols and phytosterols were enriched to 12.2%, 28.6% and about 60% respectively. The proposed method could be used for simultaneous extraction of crude phytosterols, tocopherols, and squalene from SODD, which provided reference for the further purification and enrichment of squalene, tocopherols and phytosterols.