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A review. The compn., properties, and uses of vegetable oils in the chem. industry, as a renewable resource are discussed. Vegetable oils as a renewable resource, are feedstocks that are available readily and on a stable basis vs. petroleum, suitable for prodn. of oleo-chems. Spent vegetable oils, e.g., cooking oil, are recyclable into, e.g., diesel oil. Prodn. of ?-sulfonated fatty acid Me esters as an alternative to alkylbenzene sulfonates and uses of vegetable oils as biodegradable hydraulic fluids and fuel additives are also discussed. The use of vegetable oils as solvents and illustrative examples in acid catalysis and epoxidn. reactions are outlined.