Oils and fats

Abstract

Oils and fats are collective names for a group of products which universally occur in nature. They have similar characteristics: feel fatty to the touch, are not soluble in water and are lighter than water. The main difference between oils on the one hand and fats on the other is that oils are liquid at room temperature and fats are solid. Changes in temperature can convert the one into the other. A lowering of the temperature will congeal oils (make them solid); an increase in temperature melts solid fats (they become liquid).