IR spectroscopy and chemometrics for physical property prediction of structured lipids produced by interesterification of beef tallow

The aim of this study was the application of infrared spectroscopy and chemometrics to the prediction of slip melting point (SMP), melting points at different melted fat percentages (MP85, MP90, MP95), and consistency of structured lipids to provide fast and reliable methods for their characterization. Tallow was chemically or enzymatically interesterified with corn, canola, and safflower oils separately, at different ratios. Fourier-transform mid-infrared (FT-IR) and near-infrared (FT-NIR) spectra of melted and solid samples were collected. Partial-least-square regression models constructed after different spectra pre-treatments and variable selection were satisfactory. The best models were obtained with solid sample FT-NIR spectra: in cross-validation, determination coefficients and root mean square errors were, respectively, 0.85 and 1.7 °C for SMP, 0.85 and 2.8 °C for MP90, and 0.91 and 14 MPa for consistency. Infrared spectroscopy can be considered a promising tool to determine physical properties of interesterified fats.