Enzymatic synthesis of fatty acid ethyl esters by utilizing camellia oil soapstocks and diethyl carbonate

► FAEEs have effective performance as alternatives or additives to industrial solvent. ► They were produced by lipase-catalyzed reaction of DEC and camellia oil soapstocks. ► The yield could attain 98.4% in solvent-free system under our optimized conditions. ► And lipases had high adaptability and operational stability in the reaction system. ► The novel process is eco-friendly and applicable to various vegetable oil soapstocks.