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How Glycerol Is Produced: Fermentation, Fat Breakdown, Uses and Applications

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Glycerin can be produced through fermentation: when yeast ferments sugar, part of that sugar is converted into glycerin rather than alcohol. The renowned French scientist Louis Pasteur first noticed this conversion during alcohol production with yeast. Glycerin More commonly, glycerin is obtained from the breakdown of fats.

What is glycerin used for?

Glycerin serves as a protective and softening agent across many industries, and it is also a raw material for explosives. Its main roles include:

  • Preventing products from drying out by retaining moisture.
  • Acting as a softening (emollient) agent in cosmetics and household goods.
  • Serving as a key ingredient in the manufacture of explosives.

How is glycerin obtained?

Glycerin is most often obtained from the breakdown (hydrolysis) of fats. Extracting it from alcoholic fermentation liquids, such as mash, was considered impractical because its concentration in the mash is too low to be worth recovering.

How does adding sulfites change fermentation?

Adding sulfites — the salts of sulfurous acid — to a fermenting medium redirects the process so that glycerin, rather than ethyl alcohol, becomes the main product. This insight came out of fundamental research into alcoholic fermentation, which showed that a relatively small addition of sulfites shifts the reaction toward glycerin.

Glycerin was produced this way in Germany, England, and other countries. It demonstrates that fermentation yields more than just alcohol and carbon dioxide: from agricultural products such as corn, fermentation can also produce glycerin.

Frequently Asked Questions

How is glycerol produced?
Glycerol is produced through the breakdown of fats and through fermentation. During alcohol fermentation with yeast, part of the sugar converts into glycerol. Adding sulfites to the fermenting medium shifts the process so that glycerol, rather than ethyl alcohol, becomes the main product.
What is glycerol used for?
Glycerol is widely used as a substance that protects products from drying out, as a softening or emollient agent, and in the manufacture of explosives. Its applications span cosmetics, food preservation, and industrial chemistry.
Why is glycerol not extracted from alcoholic fermentation liquids?
Extracting glycerol from alcoholic fermentation solutions (mash) was considered impractical because its concentration in the mash is too low to be economically recovered.
What role do sulfites play in glycerol production?
Adding sulfites (salts of sulfurous acid) to a fermenting medium redirects the fermentation process. Instead of producing mainly ethyl alcohol, the reaction yields primarily glycerol, enabling industrial-scale glycerol production.
Can glycerol be made from corn?
Yes. Through fermentation of products such as corn, it is possible to obtain not only ethanol and carbon dioxide but also glycerol, depending on the fermentation conditions used.
Who first observed glycerol formation during fermentation?
The famous French scientist Louis Pasteur first noted that during alcohol production with yeast, part of the sugar converts into glycerol.

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