TOFA comes from distilling tall oil, a kraft pulping by-product; oleic acid is split from vegetable and animal fats as a mainly single-chain cut (C18:1 min 75%). TOFA carries rosin acids and unsaponifiables and is more unsaturated (iodine value min 150); oleic acid, at min 90 iodine value, offers a tighter colour spec.
Origin: a pulping side-stream or an oil harvest?
The two raw materials are chemically related but commercially come from different worlds. Tall oil fatty acids (TOFA, CAS 61790-12-3) are obtained by distilling the crude tall oil released during kraft (sulphate) pulping of pine and similar softwoods, so they are the valorisation of an industrial side-stream that already exists. Oleic acid (CAS 112-80-1, C18H34O2) is an oleochemical produced by splitting vegetable- and animal-sourced fats into fatty acids.
That difference in origin has a direct procurement consequence: TOFA availability tracks pulp production volume, while oleic acid availability tracks oil harvests and food/feed demand. The two streams do not tighten at the same time, which is why many formulators treat them not as drop-in substitutes for each other but as two supply lines with different risk profiles.
Composition: a mixed fraction or a defined single chain?
The oleic acid specification targets the chain distribution directly: C18:1 oleic acid min 75%, C18:2 linoleic acid max 14%, C18:0 and below max 14%, other components max 1.5%. The product is cut to hold one chain type at a high share.
TOFA, in that sense, is not a cut but a fraction. Its specification is written as ceilings rather than chain percentages: for TOFA 185, rosin acid max 2% and unsaponifiable matter max 4%; for TOFA 180, rosin acid max 3% and unsaponifiable matter max 6%. Those two lines are the real chemical signature separating TOFA from oleic acid: TOFA carries some rosin acid and neutral matter alongside the fatty acids, oleic acid does not.
BİO BAZLI ÜRÜNLERTall Oil Fatty Acids 185 (TOFA)Rosin acid max 2% and unsaponifiables max 4%: the most colour-sensitive grade in the TOFA family, for alkyd resin, dimer acid and inks.TOFA vs oleic acid specification comparison
How narrow is your colour and odour tolerance?
The row that matters most to a formulator here is colour. Oleic Acid 75% is sold against a measured colour limit (Lovibond max 10.0Y / 1.0R), while TOFA grades express colour as an appearance description rather than a numeric limit (light yellow to amber for TOFA 185, amber to dark amber for TOFA 180). In white and pastel systems with a very narrow colour tolerance, that argues for oleic acid. In the same way, the rosin acid and unsaponifiable share TOFA carries gives it a characteristic tall oil odour, so in odour-sensitive formulations you should agree up front how much of that share is tolerable.
Which one wins in which application?
Alkyd resins and drying systems: TOFA
Unsaturation drives oxidative drying and iodine value measures it. TOFA grades, at min 150 iodine value, are markedly more unsaturated than Oleic Acid 75% at min 90.0. That is where TOFA's structural advantage in alkyd resins, oil-modified polymers and drying binder systems comes from, and the product data lists alkyd resin and oil-modified polymer production as the primary application for TOFA 185. The same unsaturation is decisive in dimer acid and polyamide production.
Soaps, surfactants and lubricant esters: both are on the table
Industrial soap, anionic surfactant, metalworking fluid and lubricant/grease formulations are listed for both raw materials. Here the choice depends less on unsaturation and more on three practical questions: how critical is colour in the finished product, is some rosin acid tolerable, and does cold behaviour matter (oleic acid is specified with titre max 9.0 °C and cloud point max 8.0 °C).
Flotation: the TOFA 180 side
Collector chemistry in mining flotation appears in the application list of both TOFA 180 and Oleic Acid 75%. TOFA 180 is particularly well suited to it, because flotation is not a colour-sensitive application and the grade's wider tolerance for rosin acid (max 3%) and unsaponifiable matter (max 6%) means fewer refinement steps in distillation.
BİO BAZLI ÜRÜNLERTall Oil Fatty Acids 180 (TOFA)Rosin-tolerant grade for flotation collectors, bitumen modification, industrial soap and cutting fluids.OLEOKİMYASALLAROleic Acid 75%Vegetable- and animal-sourced fatty acid cut with C18:1 min 75%, a measured Lovibond colour limit and defined titre / cloud point.The cost and continuity logic
We do not quote figures here because price varies with lot, volume and delivery terms, but the logic is stable. TOFA is born from distilling a side-stream that is produced anyway, so its supply depends on the activity level of the pulp industry. Oleic acid comes from fats that share a raw-material pool with the food and feed chain, so its supply moves with harvests and food demand. A formulation locked to a single fatty acid line is exposed to only one of those two dynamics. Keeping both qualified on specification is the cheapest way to split that supply risk.
- Colour critical, odour tolerance narrow, unsaturation secondary: Oleic Acid 75%.
- Drying, esterification and dimerization performance first: TOFA 185.
- Wide colour tolerance, cost and rosin tolerance decisive: TOFA 180.
- Want to split supply risk: qualify both lines in advance with a sample and CoA.
Validate with a sample
A switch between the two raw materials does not end with a specification comparison on paper: how the acid value, iodine value and colour behaviour land in your own system is only visible in the lab. KORKİMYA recommends pre-validating either side with a sample and the per-lot certificate of analysis (CoA); you can open a sample and quote request from the product pages.
Safe handling
Can TOFA replace oleic acid?
In most industrial applications yes, but not as a drop-in. TOFA brings higher unsaturation (iodine value min 150) and carries rosin acid alongside it (max 2% for TOFA 185, max 3% for TOFA 180), which needs to be accounted for in colour- and odour-sensitive systems.
Why do TOFA and oleic acid differ in iodine value?
Oleic Acid 75% is predominantly the single-double-bond C18:1 chain and is specified at min 90.0 iodine value. TOFA grades are a mixed C18 fraction that also contains polyunsaturated components and are sold at min 150 iodine value.
Which is more suitable for alkyd resin?
TOFA 185 is preferred in drying alkyd systems: min 150 iodine value supports oxidative drying, while max 2% rosin acid and max 4% unsaponifiable matter give a cleaner, lighter-coloured resin on esterification.
Does the oleic acid colour advantage show up in the specification?
Yes. Oleic Acid 75% is sold against a measured colour limit (Lovibond max 10.0Y / 1.0R), whereas TOFA grades state colour as an appearance description instead of a numeric limit (TOFA 185: light yellow to amber; TOFA 180: amber to dark amber).
Is there a difference in cold storage behaviour?
Oleic Acid 75% is specified with titre max 9.0 °C and cloud point max 8.0 °C, and the product form is liquid at 9 °C. TOFA grade specifications contain no titre or cloud point row; both are stored in closed tanks at 20-40 °C.