The optimal reaction conditions of methyl esterification of palm oil deodorizer distillate were studied so as to extract the natural vitamin E. The effects of molar ratio of methanol to oil, dosage of catalyst, reaction temperature and reaction time on the methyl esterification were investigated by single factor experiment and the reaction conditions were optimized by orthogonal experiment. The results showed that the optimal methyl esterification conditions of palm oil deodorizer distillate were obtained as follows: molar ratio of methanol to oil 7.5∶1, dosage of catalyst 1.5%, reaction temperature 70℃ and reaction time 45 min. Under these conditions, the methyl esterification rate of palm oil deodorizer distillate could reach 96.7%. The content of natural vitamin E in the methyl esterified product of palm oil deodorizer distillate increased from 1.26% to 8.20% after vacuum distillation. |