Isomerization during hydrogenation. I. Oleic acid

Summary It was found that during the hydrogenation of octadecenoic acids, migration of the double bonds takes place equally in each direction. The positional isomers that are formed are composed of the 1∶2 equilibrium mixture of cis and trans . A partial hydrogenation‐dehydrogenation theory may be applied to explain the simultaneous formation of both positional and geometrical isomers.