Title of Invention	"AN IMPROVED PROCESS FOR PRODUCTION OF ALEURITIC ACID FROM LAC AND ITS WASTE, AND PRODUCT THEREOF"
Abstract	The present invention relates to an improved process for production of aleuritic acid from lac and product thereof, particularly the present invention relates to an improved process for production of aleuritic acid from seed lac, shell lac, kiri lac and other lac containing materials and product thereof, more particularly the present invention relates to an improved process for production of aleuritic acid from seed lac and its waste, and product thereof.

Title of Invention

"AN IMPROVED PROCESS FOR PRODUCTION OF ALEURITIC ACID FROM LAC AND ITS WASTE, AND PRODUCT THEREOF"

Abstract

The present invention relates to an improved process for production of aleuritic acid from lac and product thereof, particularly the present invention relates to an improved process for production of aleuritic acid from seed lac, shell lac, kiri lac and other lac containing materials and product thereof, more particularly the present invention relates to an improved process for production of aleuritic acid from seed lac and its waste, and product thereof.

Full Text	Title of the Invention : An improved process for production of aleuritic acid from lac. Field of the Invention : The present invention relates to an improved process for production of aleuritic acid from lac and product thereof, particularly the present invention relates to an improved process for production of aleuritic acid from seed lac, shell lac, kiri lac and other lac containing materials and product thereof, more particularly the present invention relates to an improved process for production of aleuritic acid from seed lac and its waste, and product thereof. Background of the invention : Aleuritic acid (9,10, 16-trihydroxpalmitic acid) is a very important raw material for the synthesis of intermediates for and the manufacture of industrially important musk fragrances. Many fragrance components for use in the perfume industry, such as trans delta(9)isoambrettolide and ambrete seed oil musk called ambrettolide can be prepared from aleuritic acid. Musk odour is perhaps the most universally appreciated fragrance, which has higher demand as compared to any other fragrance. The limitation of this fragrance is that, it has a low supply. Therefore, numerous attempts have been made to duplicate this musk fragrance by using synthetic reaction schemes. One of such scheme to duplicate the musk fragrance by synthetic process is by involving aleuritic acid as a starting raw material, which has led to its high demand and controlled supply. The foremost requirement of aleuritic acid for use in the manufacture of perfumes is its high purity, which is the controlling factor in its acceptance in the market, being the controlling factor in the quality of the manufactured perfume. Therefore, there had been great emphasis on production of aleuritic acid, due to its great demand, with special emphasis on its purity. Industrial methods have been made available for production of aleuritic acid. One of the most commonly used method of production of aleuritic acid, which has replaced many known industrial methods, is by hydrolysis of lac, particularly of seed lac, shell lac, kiri lac and other lac products, which in turn are excreted by an insect Laccifer lacca Kerr (family Lacciferidae Cockerel) on certain varieties of trees (called lac hosts) indigenous to India and Thailand. The presently used method of production of aleuritic acid primarily involves four steps. The first step involves hydrolysis of lac by sodium or potassium hydroxide for an extended period varying between ten to fifteen days. The second step involves filtration of hydrolysate and washing of the precipitates with saturated salt water to yield sodium aleuritate. In the third step, this sodium aleuritate is acidified by hydrochloric acid or sulphuric acid to yield aleuritic acid. The aleuritic acid, thus obtained is of purity of about 70 to 85 %, which is not acceptable in the perfume market as a superior product. Therefore, the aleuritic acid thus obtained is purified in step four, which is repeated number of times to obtain purified aleuritic acid. The said fourth step involves purification by dissolving the aleuritic acid in alkali and re-precipitation by treatment with hydrochloric acid and or sulphuric acid. Alternately, the aleuritic acid is reported to be purified by crystallisation from the organic solvents, such as ethyl acetate, benzene or methanol. The major disadvantage of such known method of production of aleuritic acid is that, the purification step, which is required to be repeated several times is highly uneconomical. Further, drawback of such known method is that the alternate method of purification of aleuritic acid involves crystallisation of aleuritic solvents from organic acid, such as ethyl acetate, benzene or methanol. Another limitation of presently known and used method of production of aleuritic acid is that, the yield of the process is very low, ranging from 10% to 18%, which make the process uneconomical. Still another limitation of the presently known and used method of production of aleuritic acid is that, the purity of the produced aleuritic acid remains low and uncertain. Still another disadvantage of the presently known and used method of production of aleuritic acid is that, despite losing considerable amount of material during reprocessing and recrystallisation steps to get aleuritic acid, which is acceptable in the market, the presently known method lead to severe constraints on the manufacturer in terms of additional man power requirement and additional chemicals and solvents for recrystallisation. Still another disadvantage of the presently known and used method of production of aleuritic acid is that, the effluents of the process results in severe environmental pollution. Still further disadvantage of the presently known and used method of production of aleuritic acid is that, the product becomes hardened over a period of time and it becomes difficult to pulverize to desirable mesh size. Another disadvantage of such known process is that, it requires charcolisation to make it colourless. Alternatively one may have to carry out bleaching with bleach liquor or hydrogen peroxide. Yet another disadvantage of the presently known and used method of production of aleuritic acid is that, it is highly time consuming, particularly in the hydrolysis step. Still another disadvantage of the presently known and used method of production of aleuritic acid is that, it is highly energy consuming, particularly in the filtration steps. Further, till recently, aleuritic acid used be accepted or rejected in the market on the basis of color, melting point range, acid value and solubility behavior, which have their inherent inaccuracies. Now with the availability of various quality control instruments, like HPLC and other instrumental methods, there has been a reluctance among the purchasers of aleuritic acid in its acceptance on the basis of color, melting point range, and acid value and solubility behavior. Therefore, it is obvious from the foregoing description, that the currently known and used method for production of aleuritic acid from its prime source, particularly lac, more particularly from seed lac, shell lac, kiri lac or other lac, is not sufficient to produce high purity aleuritic acid with reasonable yield, which is commercially viable. The presently known and used method is therefore not only limited to produce the low yield but also the poor purity. Considerable efforts, therefore have been put in to research to determine alternative ways and means to obtain pure aleuritic acid with reasonable yield, which is commercially viable. Therefore, the emphasis is now being given to the purity level of the aleuritic acid in addition to the yield of the production process. Need of the Invention : Therefore, there is a need to have an improved process for production of aleuritic acid from lac, particularly to have an improved process for production of aleuritic acid from seed lac, shell lac, kiri lac and other lac containing materials, more particularly to have an improved process for production of aleuritic acid from seed lac, which can produce high purity aleuritic acid in reasonable yields and to achieve a process, which is commercially viable. Objects of the Invention : The main object of the present invention is to make a complete disclosure of an improved method for production of aleuritic acid from lac, particularly of a process for production of aleuritic acid from seed lac, shell lac, kiri lac and other lac containing materials, more particularly of a process for production of aleuritic acid from seed lac, which while over coming some of the limitations and disadvantages of the presently known and used method, as described herein above, can also produce high purity aleuritic acid with reasonable yield, which is commercial viable. This is another an object of the present invention to propose for an improved method for production of aleuritic acid from lac and other lac containing materials, which can eliminate the reprocessing step during the purification of aleuritic acid. This is still an object of the present invention to propose for an improved method for production of aleuritic acid from lac, which is time saving and can save time of the over all process to the tune of about 5 days. This is still another an object of the present invention to propose for an improved method for production of aleuritic acid from lac and other lac containing materials, which can produce high purity aleuritic acid with reasonable yield and still being economical. Yet another an object of the present invention is to propose for an improved method for production of aleuritic acid from lac and other lac containing materials, wherein the isolation of the aleuritic acid is easy. This is yet an object of the present invention to make a disclosure of an improved method for production of aleuritic acid from lac and other lac containing materials, wherein purity of the final product can be controlled at will. This is yet another an object of the present invention to make a disclosure of an improved method for production of aleuritic acid from lac, which eliminates the use of organic solvents and makes the process environment friendly. This is still an object of the present invention to disclose an improved method for production of aleuritic acid from lac, wherein the product does not become hardened over a period of time This is still another an object of the present invention to disclose an improved method for production of aleuritic acid from lac, which does not put severe constraints on the manufacturer in terms of additional man power requirement and additional chemicals and solvents for recrystallisation. Other objects of the present invention will become obvious from the following description. Brief Description of the Invention : Accordingly, the present invention makes a complete disclosure of an improved process for production of aleuritic acid from lac, particularly from seed lac, shell lac, kiri lac and other lac containing materials, more particularly from lac and its waste, and product thereof, wherein said lac is heated with an alkali carbonate solution, which is filtered and cooled followed by transfer of the bottom material through filtration in to a separate vessel, which in-turn is treated with fresh water to raise the total volume of the solution to which an alkali solution is added followed by heating and cooling, to which an alkali sulphite and salt are added followed by addition of amino alcohol and closure of the reaction vessel, the reacted mass of which is filtered and squeezed, preferably under hydraulic pressure, till the semi dried product is obtained, which in-turn is dissolved, preferably in hot water and filtered, and the filtrate is treated with different quantities of a mixture of salts of potassium, sodium and zinc and stirred vigorously, filtered and the filtrate is cooled and treated with bleach and kept covered for a period of about 10 to 12 hrs, preferably over night and then acidified to yield aleuritic acid of desired and acceptable purity. Further objects and preferred embodiments of the present invention will be more apparent from the following description and typical example, which are not intended to limit the scope of the present invention. Detailed Description of the Invention : Accordingly the present invention makes a complete disclosure of an improved process for production of aleuritic acid from lac, particularly of a process for production of aleuritic acid from seed lac, shell lac, kiri lac and other lac and other lac containing materials, more particularly of a process for production of aleuritic acid from seed lac, wherein the capability of interaction of chemical components present in several varieties of lac with certain transition and transition metal ions has been utilised. Further, in accordance with the preferred embodiment of the present invention, it is proposed to carry out the presently disclosed process by using additional organic base for easy isolation of aleuritic acid after acidification, which is to be carried out at a set of high temperature conditions, which may vary from 15 to 120°C to yield aleuritic acid of desired purity. The proposed process for production of aleuritic acid from lac, particularly from seed lac, shell lac, kiri lac, more particularly from seed lac can yield pure aleuritic acid in the range of 18 to 20 % from a good quality lac. In accordance to the present invention, in the presently disclosed process, the use of additional organic base during hydrolysis allows the reduction in time of saponification of lac, particularly of seed lac from 10 to 15 days to about 5 to 8 days, thus resulting in saving of time to the tune of about 5 to 7 days. The proposed process also makes the isolation of aleuritic acid easier. According to the preferred embodiment of the present method, the aleuritic acid of desired purity can be obtained after acidification of sodium aleuritate with hydrochloric acid or sulphuric acid which do not require cold temperatures as required in the presently known and used method. In accordance to the preferred embodiments of the presently disclosed invention the released components, including aleuritic acid, of lac during hydrolysis are complexed with alkali and alkaline earth metal salts at a specific pH to form complex compounds leaving aleuritic acid in the form of sodium aleuritate from which aleuritic acid can be obtained in relatively purer form. According to one of the preferred embodiments of this invention, the precipitated salts can be treated further to yield a fresh crop of technical grade of aleuritic acid, which can then be purified by any such known method. According to the present invention, the filtration of the saponified lac is expected to be faster in the presence of organic base and hence difficulties encountered in its filtration are expected to be minimised. Further, addition of filtration aid, like gaur gum and alum solution is expected to increase the granularity of aleuritic acid which is expected to further increase the purity of aleuritic acid obtained in accordance with the presently disclosed method. In accordance to one of the preferred embodiments of the presently disclosed invention, lac, particularly seed lac, shell lac, kiri lac, more particularly seed lac, is heated with an alkali carbonate, preferably sodium carbonate solution, preferably with saturated sodium carbonate solution for about 2 hrs. The treated lac is then filtered while hot and allowed to cool, preferably to room temperature. The bottom material, about 4/5 , is transferred through filtration in to a separate vessel and treated with fresh water so that the total volume of solution is about three to five times, preferably about four times the initial weight of lac, particularly seed lac. An alkali, preferably sodium hydroxide or potassium hydroxide, is added to this, preferably in small lots and the resulted solution is heated to a temperature of about 80 to 90°C, which is then allowed to cool to a temperature of about 50 to 60°C and an alkali sulphite, preferably sodium sulphite and salt is added to the cooled reacted mass, which is followed by addition of amino alcohol and the reaction vessel is closed in order not to allow the vapours of sulphur dioxide escape and to stop aerial oxidation of lac and of the resulted aleuritic acid. The material obtained is filtered after appropriate time of about 5 to 8 days preferably through a markin or a terrycot or a filter cloth and squeezed, preferably under hydraulic pressure to get rid of as much moisture as possible at this stage, till the semi dried product is obtained. In accordance to the present invention the semi dried thick, preferably brown mass obtained at this stage is dissolved, preferably in hot water and filtered. The filtrate is treated with different quantities of a mixture of salts of potassium, sodium and zinc and stirred vigorously. It is filtered and the filtrate cooled preferably to about 0°C to 10°C and is treated with about 10% of bleach and kept covered for a period of about 10 to 12 hrs, preferably over night. In accordance with the preferred embodiment of this invention the acidification step is performed at this stage and the said acidification step is performed with phosphoric acid or hydrochloric acid or sulphuric acid, preferably with dilute hydrochloric acid or dilute sulphuric acid to yield aleuritic acid of desired and acceptable purity. In accordance to still another preferred embodiment of the present invention, as described herein above, the sodium carbonate is preferably taken 25% of the weight of the lac, particularly of the seed lac taken in water, the sodium hydroxide or potassium hydroxide is taken about 10% of the total weight of the solution, sodium sulphite is taken about 5 to 7 % of the total weight of lac, particularly of seed lac, the amino alcohol referred herein above is taken about 2 % of the total volume and is one of HNR2R1, where R1 = OH, NH2, CH2CH2OH, and R2 = H, CH2CH2OH, and the mixture of salts of potassium, sodium and zinc is taken to about 2 to 10% weight of the semi solid mass and the said salts are any of or mixture of sulphates, chlorides or nitrates. The analysis of the aleuritic acid obtained in accordance to the presently disclosed method, when carried out by HPLC with a UV detector and acetonitrile water as gradient solvent shows purity of about 94% and the aleuritic acid obtained is soluble in alcohols, like ROH, wherein R is CH3, C2H5, with melting point range of 96 to 98°C. Typical Example of the Invention : In accordance to the presently disclosed method, seed lac is heated with a saturated sodium carbonate solution for 2 hrs. The treated lac is then filtered while hot and allowed to cool to room temperature say about 30°C. The bottom material, about 4/5th of the reacted mass, is transferred through filtration in to a separate vessel and treated with fresh water so that the total volume of solution is about four times the initial weight of seed lac. Sodium hydroxide or potassium hydroxide, measuring 10% of the total weight of this solution, is added to this solution in small lots and the resulted solution is heated to a temperature of 80 to 90°C, which is then allowed to cool to a temperature of 50 to 60°C. To this cooled solution, sodium sulphite, measuring 5-7% of the total weight of seed lac and salt, measuring 20-30% of the total weight of seed lac are added, followed by addition of amino alcohol, preferably HNR2Rh wherein R1 = OH, NH2, CH2CH2OH, and R2 = H, CH2CH2OH, measuring 2% of the total volume. The reaction vessel is closed in order not to allow the vapours of sulphur dioxide escape and to stop aerial oxidation of lac and of the resulted aleuritic acid. The material obtained is filtered after about 5 to 8 days through a terrycot and squeezed, under hydraulic pressure to get rid of moisture, till the semi dried product is obtained, which is dissolved in hot water and filtered. The filtrate is treated with different quantities, measuring 2 to 10% weight of semi solid mass, of a mixture of sulphates or chlorides or nitrates of potassium, sodium and zinc and stirred vigorously. It is filtered and the filtrate cooled preferably to 10°C and is treated with 10% of bleach and kept covered for a period of 10 to 12 hrs, preferably over night, which is acidified with dilute hydrochloric acid or dilute sulphuric acid to yield aleuritic acid of 94% purity, as confirmed by HPLC%, and is soluble in methanol, ethanol having melting point range of 96 to 98°C. The presently disclosed invention has been described with a set of specific reaction for production of aleuritic acid of the presently disclosed invention, which is not intended to limit the scope of the present invention. It is obvious that, a minor modification in the reaction conditions of the presently disclosed set of specific reaction for production of aleuritic acid of the presently disclosed invention is possible without deviating from the scope of the present invention. We claim: 1. An improved process for production of aleuritic acid from lac, particularly from seed lac, shell lac, kiri lac and other lac containing materials, more particularly from seed lac, wherein a) the said lac is heated for about 2 hours with an alkali carbonate preferably sodium carbonate more preferably saturated sodium carbonate and is taken 25% of the weight of the said lac. b) the said alkali carbonate solution of step (a) is filtered and cooled to room temperature. c) the bottom material of the resulting solution of step (b) is transferred by filtration into a separate vessel. d) the total volume of the said filtered solution of step © is raised to about three to five times preferably to about four times the initial weight of the said lac by adding fresh water. e) an alkali solution preferably sodium hydroxide or potassium hydroxide, taken about 10% of the total weight of the solution obtained from step (d) is added to the solution obtained from (d) above preferably in small lots and the resulting solution is heated to a temperature of about 80° to 90° and then allowed to cool to a temp, of about 50°-60°C. f) a salt and alkali sulphite more preferably sodium sulphite is added to the solution of step(e) and is taken about 5%-7% of the total weight of the said lac. g) an amino-alcohol taken about 2% of the total volume of the resulting solution is added to the mixture of step(f), followed by closure of the reaction vessel. h) the reacted mass of the resulting solution of step (g) is filtered after appropriate time of about 5-8 days preferably through a marking or a terrycot or a filter cloth, i) the said reacted mass obtained after filteration in step (h) is squeezed preferably under hydraulic pressure till the semi dried product is obtained. j) the said semi dried product is dissolved in hot water followed by filteration. k) the filterate is treated with any of or mixture of sulphates, chlorides or nitrates of potassium, sodium and zinc are taken to about !0% weight of the said semi dried mass of step (j) is stirred vigorously and filtered. 1) the resulting filterate is cooled preferably to about 0-1OC. m) the resulting cooled filterate is treated with about 10% of bleach and kept covered for a period of 10-12 hours preferably overnight, n) the resulting solution is acidified with phosphoric acid or hydrochloric acid or sulphuric acid to yield aleuritic acid of desired and acceptable purity. 2. An improved method, as claimed in claim 1 wherein said amino alcohol is one of HNR2 R1 where R1 = OH, NH2, CH2CH2OH, and R2 = H, CH2CH2OH. 3. An improved method, as claimed in claim 1, wherein said mixture of salts of potassium, sodium and zinc is taken to about 2 to 10% weight of said semi solid mass. 4. An improved method for production of aleuritic acid as substantially herein described with reference to the accompanying examples.

Full Text

Title of the Invention :
An improved process for production of aleuritic acid from lac. Field of the Invention :
The present invention relates to an improved process for production of aleuritic acid from lac and product thereof, particularly the present invention relates to an improved process for production of aleuritic acid from seed lac, shell lac, kiri lac and other lac containing materials and product thereof, more particularly the present invention relates to an improved process for production of aleuritic acid from seed lac and its waste, and product thereof.
Background of the invention :
Aleuritic acid (9,10, 16-trihydroxpalmitic acid) is a very important raw material for the synthesis of intermediates for and the manufacture of industrially important musk fragrances. Many fragrance components for use in the perfume industry, such as trans delta(9)isoambrettolide and ambrete seed oil musk called ambrettolide can be prepared from aleuritic acid. Musk odour is perhaps the most universally appreciated fragrance, which has higher demand as compared to any other fragrance. The limitation of this fragrance is that, it has a low supply. Therefore, numerous attempts have been made to duplicate this musk fragrance by using synthetic reaction schemes.

One of such scheme to duplicate the musk fragrance by synthetic process is by involving aleuritic acid as a starting raw material, which has led to its high demand and controlled supply. The foremost requirement of aleuritic acid for use in the manufacture of perfumes is its high purity, which is the controlling factor in its acceptance in the market, being the controlling factor in the quality of the manufactured perfume.
Therefore, there had been great emphasis on production of aleuritic acid, due to its great demand, with special emphasis on its purity. Industrial methods have been made available for production of aleuritic acid.
One of the most commonly used method of production of aleuritic acid, which has replaced many known industrial methods, is by hydrolysis of lac, particularly of seed lac, shell lac, kiri lac and other lac products, which in turn are excreted by an insect Laccifer lacca Kerr (family Lacciferidae Cockerel) on certain varieties of trees (called lac hosts) indigenous to India and Thailand.
The presently used method of production of aleuritic acid primarily involves four steps. The first step involves hydrolysis of lac by sodium or potassium hydroxide for an extended period varying between ten to fifteen days. The second step involves filtration of hydrolysate and washing of the precipitates with saturated salt water to yield sodium aleuritate. In the third step, this sodium aleuritate is acidified by hydrochloric acid or sulphuric acid to yield aleuritic acid. The aleuritic acid, thus obtained is of purity of about 70 to 85 %, which is not acceptable in the perfume market as a superior product.
Therefore, the aleuritic acid thus obtained is purified in step four, which is repeated number of times to obtain purified aleuritic acid. The said fourth step involves purification by dissolving the aleuritic acid in alkali and re-precipitation by treatment with hydrochloric acid and or sulphuric acid. Alternately, the aleuritic acid is reported to be purified by crystallisation from the organic solvents, such as ethyl acetate, benzene or methanol.

The major disadvantage of such known method of production of aleuritic acid is that, the purification step, which is required to be repeated several times is highly uneconomical.
Further, drawback of such known method is that the alternate method of purification of aleuritic acid involves crystallisation of aleuritic solvents from organic acid, such as ethyl acetate, benzene or methanol.
Another limitation of presently known and used method of production of aleuritic acid is that, the yield of the process is very low, ranging from 10% to 18%, which make the process uneconomical.
Still another limitation of the presently known and used method of production of aleuritic acid is that, the purity of the produced aleuritic acid remains low and uncertain.
Still another disadvantage of the presently known and used method of production of aleuritic acid is that, despite losing considerable amount of material during reprocessing and recrystallisation steps to get aleuritic acid, which is acceptable in the market, the presently known method lead to severe constraints on the manufacturer in terms of additional man power requirement and additional chemicals and solvents for recrystallisation.
Still another disadvantage of the presently known and used method of production of aleuritic acid is that, the effluents of the process results in severe environmental pollution.
Still further disadvantage of the presently known and used method of production of aleuritic acid is that, the product becomes hardened over a period of time and it becomes difficult to pulverize to desirable mesh size.
Another disadvantage of such known process is that, it requires charcolisation to make it colourless. Alternatively one may have to carry out bleaching with bleach liquor or hydrogen peroxide.

Yet another disadvantage of the presently known and used method of production of aleuritic acid is that, it is highly time consuming, particularly in the hydrolysis step.
Still another disadvantage of the presently known and used method of production of aleuritic acid is that, it is highly energy consuming, particularly in the filtration steps.
Further, till recently, aleuritic acid used be accepted or rejected in the market on the basis of color, melting point range, acid value and solubility behavior, which have their inherent inaccuracies. Now with the availability of various quality control instruments, like HPLC and other instrumental methods, there has been a reluctance among the purchasers of aleuritic acid in its acceptance on the basis of color, melting point range, and acid value and solubility behavior.
Therefore, it is obvious from the foregoing description, that the currently known and used method for production of aleuritic acid from its prime source, particularly lac, more particularly from seed lac, shell lac, kiri lac or other lac, is not sufficient to produce high purity aleuritic acid with reasonable yield, which is commercially viable. The presently known and used method is therefore not only limited to produce the low yield but also the poor purity.
Considerable efforts, therefore have been put in to research to determine alternative ways and means to obtain pure aleuritic acid with reasonable yield, which is commercially viable. Therefore, the emphasis is now being given to the purity level of the aleuritic acid in addition to the yield of the production process.
Need of the Invention :
Therefore, there is a need to have an improved process for production of aleuritic acid from lac, particularly to have an improved process for production of aleuritic acid from seed lac, shell lac, kiri lac and other lac containing materials, more particularly to have an improved process for production of aleuritic acid from seed lac, which can produce high

purity aleuritic acid in reasonable yields and to achieve a process, which is commercially viable.
Objects of the Invention :
The main object of the present invention is to make a complete disclosure of an improved method for production of aleuritic acid from lac, particularly of a process for production of aleuritic acid from seed lac, shell lac, kiri lac and other lac containing materials, more particularly of a process for production of aleuritic acid from seed lac, which while over coming some of the limitations and disadvantages of the presently known and used method, as described herein above, can also produce high purity aleuritic acid with reasonable yield, which is commercial viable.
This is another an object of the present invention to propose for an improved method for production of aleuritic acid from lac and other lac containing materials, which can eliminate the reprocessing step during the purification of aleuritic acid.
This is still an object of the present invention to propose for an improved method for production of aleuritic acid from lac, which is time saving and can save time of the over all process to the tune of about 5 days.
This is still another an object of the present invention to propose for an improved method for production of aleuritic acid from lac and other lac containing materials, which can produce high purity aleuritic acid with reasonable yield and still being economical.
Yet another an object of the present invention is to propose for an improved method for production of aleuritic acid from lac and other lac containing materials, wherein the isolation of the aleuritic acid is easy.
This is yet an object of the present invention to make a disclosure of an improved method for production of aleuritic acid from lac and other lac containing materials, wherein purity of the final product can be controlled at will.

This is yet another an object of the present invention to make a disclosure of an improved method for production of aleuritic acid from lac, which eliminates the use of organic solvents and makes the process environment friendly.
This is still an object of the present invention to disclose an improved method for production of aleuritic acid from lac, wherein the product does not become hardened over a period of time
This is still another an object of the present invention to disclose an improved method for production of aleuritic acid from lac, which does not put severe constraints on the manufacturer in terms of additional man power requirement and additional chemicals and solvents for recrystallisation.
Other objects of the present invention will become obvious from the following description.
Brief Description of the Invention :
Accordingly, the present invention makes a complete disclosure of an improved process for production of aleuritic acid from lac, particularly from seed lac, shell lac, kiri lac and other lac containing materials, more particularly from lac and its waste, and product thereof, wherein said lac is heated with an alkali carbonate solution, which is filtered and cooled followed by transfer of the bottom material through filtration in to a separate vessel, which in-turn is treated with fresh water to raise the total volume of the solution to which an alkali solution is added followed by heating and cooling, to which an alkali sulphite and salt are added followed by addition of amino alcohol and closure of the reaction vessel, the reacted mass of which is filtered and squeezed, preferably under hydraulic pressure, till the semi dried product is obtained, which in-turn is dissolved, preferably in hot water and filtered, and the filtrate is treated with different quantities of a mixture of salts of potassium, sodium and zinc and stirred vigorously, filtered and the filtrate is cooled and treated with

bleach and kept covered for a period of about 10 to 12 hrs, preferably over night and then acidified to yield aleuritic acid of desired and acceptable purity.
Further objects and preferred embodiments of the present invention will be more
apparent from the following description and typical example, which are not intended to
limit the scope of the present invention.
Detailed Description of the Invention :

Accordingly the present invention makes a complete disclosure of an improved process for production of aleuritic acid from lac, particularly of a process for production of aleuritic acid from seed lac, shell lac, kiri lac and other lac and other lac containing materials, more particularly of a process for production of aleuritic acid from seed lac, wherein the capability of interaction of chemical components present in several varieties of lac with certain transition and transition metal ions has been utilised.
Further, in accordance with the preferred embodiment of the present invention, it is proposed to carry out the presently disclosed process by using additional organic base for easy isolation of aleuritic acid after acidification, which is to be carried out at a set of high temperature conditions, which may vary from 15 to 120°C to yield aleuritic acid of desired purity. The proposed process for production of aleuritic acid from lac, particularly from seed lac, shell lac, kiri lac, more particularly from seed lac can yield pure aleuritic acid in the range of 18 to 20 % from a good quality lac.
In accordance to the present invention, in the presently disclosed process, the use of additional organic base during hydrolysis allows the reduction in time of saponification of lac, particularly of seed lac from 10 to 15 days to about 5 to 8 days, thus resulting in saving of time to the tune of about 5 to 7 days. The proposed process also makes the isolation of aleuritic acid easier. According to the preferred embodiment of the present method, the aleuritic acid of desired purity can be obtained after acidification of sodium aleuritate with hydrochloric acid or sulphuric acid which do not require cold temperatures as required in the presently known and used method.

In accordance to the preferred embodiments of the presently disclosed invention the released components, including aleuritic acid, of lac during hydrolysis are complexed with alkali and alkaline earth metal salts at a specific pH to form complex compounds leaving aleuritic acid in the form of sodium aleuritate from which aleuritic acid can be obtained in relatively purer form. According to one of the preferred embodiments of this invention, the precipitated salts can be treated further to yield a fresh crop of technical grade of aleuritic acid, which can then be purified by any such known method.
According to the present invention, the filtration of the saponified lac is expected to be faster in the presence of organic base and hence difficulties encountered in its filtration are expected to be minimised. Further, addition of filtration aid, like gaur gum and alum solution is expected to increase the granularity of aleuritic acid which is expected to further increase the purity of aleuritic acid obtained in accordance with the presently disclosed method.
In accordance to one of the preferred embodiments of the presently disclosed invention, lac, particularly seed lac, shell lac, kiri lac, more particularly seed lac, is heated with an alkali carbonate, preferably sodium carbonate solution, preferably with saturated sodium carbonate solution for about 2 hrs. The treated lac is then filtered while hot and allowed to cool, preferably to room temperature. The bottom material, about 4/5 , is transferred through filtration in to a separate vessel and treated with fresh water so that the total volume of solution is about three to five times, preferably about four times the initial weight of lac, particularly seed lac. An alkali, preferably sodium hydroxide or potassium hydroxide, is added to this, preferably in small lots and the resulted solution is heated to a temperature of about 80 to 90°C, which is then allowed to cool to a temperature of about 50 to 60°C and an alkali sulphite, preferably sodium sulphite and salt is added to the cooled reacted mass, which is followed by addition of amino alcohol and the reaction vessel is closed in order not to allow the vapours of sulphur dioxide escape and to stop aerial oxidation of lac and of the resulted aleuritic acid. The material obtained is filtered after appropriate time of about 5 to 8 days preferably through a markin or a terrycot or a filter

cloth and squeezed, preferably under hydraulic pressure to get rid of as much moisture as possible at this stage, till the semi dried product is obtained.
In accordance to the present invention the semi dried thick, preferably brown mass obtained at this stage is dissolved, preferably in hot water and filtered. The filtrate is treated with different quantities of a mixture of salts of potassium, sodium and zinc and stirred vigorously. It is filtered and the filtrate cooled preferably to about 0°C to 10°C and is treated with about 10% of bleach and kept covered for a period of about 10 to 12 hrs, preferably over night.
In accordance with the preferred embodiment of this invention the acidification step is performed at this stage and the said acidification step is performed with phosphoric acid or hydrochloric acid or sulphuric acid, preferably with dilute hydrochloric acid or dilute sulphuric acid to yield aleuritic acid of desired and acceptable purity.
In accordance to still another preferred embodiment of the present invention, as described herein above, the sodium carbonate is preferably taken 25% of the weight of the lac, particularly of the seed lac taken in water, the sodium hydroxide or potassium hydroxide is taken about 10% of the total weight of the solution, sodium sulphite is taken about 5 to 7 % of the total weight of lac, particularly of seed lac, the amino alcohol referred herein above is taken about 2 % of the total volume and is one of HNR2R1, where R1 = OH, NH2, CH2CH2OH, and R2 = H, CH2CH2OH, and the mixture of salts of potassium, sodium and zinc is taken to about 2 to 10% weight of the semi solid mass and the said salts are any of or mixture of sulphates, chlorides or nitrates.
The analysis of the aleuritic acid obtained in accordance to the presently disclosed method, when carried out by HPLC with a UV detector and acetonitrile water as gradient solvent shows purity of about 94% and the aleuritic acid obtained is soluble in alcohols, like ROH, wherein R is CH3, C2H5, with melting point range of 96 to 98°C.

Typical Example of the Invention :
In accordance to the presently disclosed method, seed lac is heated with a saturated sodium carbonate solution for 2 hrs. The treated lac is then filtered while hot and allowed to cool to room temperature say about 30°C. The bottom material, about 4/5th of the reacted mass, is transferred through filtration in to a separate vessel and treated with fresh water so that the total volume of solution is about four times the initial weight of seed lac. Sodium hydroxide or potassium hydroxide, measuring 10% of the total weight of this solution, is added to this solution in small lots and the resulted solution is heated to a temperature of 80 to 90°C, which is then allowed to cool to a temperature of 50 to 60°C. To this cooled solution, sodium sulphite, measuring 5-7% of the total weight of seed lac and salt, measuring 20-30% of the total weight of seed lac are added, followed by addition of amino alcohol, preferably HNR2Rh wherein R1 = OH, NH2, CH2CH2OH, and R2 = H, CH2CH2OH, measuring 2% of the total volume. The reaction vessel is closed in order not to allow the vapours of sulphur dioxide escape and to stop aerial oxidation of lac and of the resulted aleuritic acid. The material obtained is filtered after about 5 to 8 days through a terrycot and squeezed, under hydraulic pressure to get rid of moisture, till the semi dried product is obtained, which is dissolved in hot water and filtered. The filtrate is treated with different quantities, measuring 2 to 10% weight of semi solid mass, of a mixture of sulphates or chlorides or nitrates of potassium, sodium and zinc and stirred vigorously. It is filtered and the filtrate cooled preferably to 10°C and is treated with 10% of bleach and kept covered for a period of 10 to 12 hrs, preferably over night, which is acidified with dilute hydrochloric acid or dilute sulphuric acid to yield aleuritic acid of 94% purity, as confirmed by HPLC%, and is soluble in methanol, ethanol having melting point range of 96 to 98°C.
The presently disclosed invention has been described with a set of specific reaction for production of aleuritic acid of the presently disclosed invention, which is not intended to limit the scope of the present invention. It is obvious that, a minor modification in the reaction conditions of the presently disclosed set of specific reaction for production of aleuritic acid of the presently disclosed invention is possible without deviating from the scope of the present invention.

We claim:
1. An improved process for production of aleuritic acid from lac, particularly from seed lac, shell lac, kiri lac and other lac containing materials, more particularly from seed lac, wherein
a) the said lac is heated for about 2 hours with an alkali carbonate
preferably sodium carbonate more preferably saturated sodium
carbonate and is taken 25% of the weight of the said lac.
b) the said alkali carbonate solution of step (a) is filtered and cooled to
room temperature.
c) the bottom material of the resulting solution of step (b) is transferred
by filtration into a separate vessel.
d) the total volume of the said filtered solution of step © is raised to
about three to five times preferably to about four times the initial
weight of the said lac by adding fresh water.
e) an alkali solution preferably sodium hydroxide or potassium
hydroxide, taken about 10% of the total weight of the solution
obtained from step (d) is added to the solution obtained from (d) above
preferably in small lots and the resulting solution is heated to a
temperature of about 80° to 90° and then allowed to cool to a temp, of
about 50°-60°C.
f) a salt and alkali sulphite more preferably sodium sulphite is added to
the solution of step(e) and is taken about 5%-7% of the total weight of
the said lac.
g) an amino-alcohol taken about 2% of the total volume of the resulting
solution is added to the mixture of step(f), followed by closure of the
reaction vessel.
h) the reacted mass of the resulting solution of step (g) is filtered after
appropriate time of about 5-8 days preferably through a marking or a
terrycot or a filter cloth, i) the said reacted mass obtained after filteration in step (h) is squeezed
preferably under hydraulic pressure till the semi dried product is
obtained.

j) the said semi dried product is dissolved in hot water followed by
filteration. k) the filterate is treated with any of or mixture of sulphates, chlorides or
nitrates of potassium, sodium and zinc are taken to about !0% weight
of the said semi dried mass of step (j) is stirred vigorously and filtered. 1) the resulting filterate is cooled preferably to about 0-1OC. m) the resulting cooled filterate is treated with about 10% of bleach and
kept covered for a period of 10-12 hours preferably overnight, n) the resulting solution is acidified with phosphoric acid or hydrochloric
acid or sulphuric acid to yield aleuritic acid of desired and acceptable
purity.
2. An improved method, as claimed in claim 1 wherein said amino alcohol is
one of HNR2 R1 where R1 = OH, NH2, CH2CH2OH, and R2 = H, CH2CH2OH.
3. An improved method, as claimed in claim 1, wherein said mixture of salts of
potassium, sodium and zinc is taken to about 2 to 10% weight of said semi
solid mass.
4. An improved method for production of aleuritic acid as substantially herein
described with reference to the accompanying examples.

Documents:

701-DEL-1999-Abstract.pdf

701-DEL-1999-Claims.pdf

701-del-1999-correspondence-others.pdf

701-del-1999-correspondence-po.pdf

701-DEL-1999-Description (Complete).pdf

701-DEL-1999-Form-1.pdf

701-del-1999-form-19.pdf

701-DEL-1999-Form-2.pdf

701-del-1999-form-26.pdf

701-del-1999-form-6.pdf

701-del-1999-form-62.pdf

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Patent Number

231078

Indian Patent Application Number

701/DEL/1999

PG Journal Number

13/2009

Publication Date

27-Mar-2009

Grant Date

28-Feb-2009

Date of Filing

10-May-1999

Name of Patentee

DEAN, INDUSTRIAL RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT (IRD)

Applicant Address

INDIAN INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY DELHI (IITD), HAUZ KHAS, NEW DELHI-110016, INDIA

Inventors:

#	Inventor's Name	Inventor's Address
1	DR. HAR MOHINDRA CHAWLA, PROFESSOR	DEPARTMENT OF CHEMISTRY, INDIAN INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY DELHI (IITD), HAUZ KHAS, NEW DELHI-110016, INDIA

PCT International Classification Number

C07C

PCT International Application Number

N/A

PCT International Filing date

PCT Conventions:

#	PCT Application Number	Date of Convention	Priority Country
1			NA