How does the length of a saturated fatty acid chain affect its melting point?

In the context of fat and oil processing, the melting point of a saturated fatty acid is directly influenced by the length of its hydrocarbon chain. Specifically, the melting temperatures of saturated fatty acids rise as the length of the hydrocarbon chain increases.1

This occurs because saturated fatty acids form crystals consisting of stacked layers of molecules, where the hydrophobic hydrocarbon chains are arranged in the interior of the layer. As the chain length grows, the molecular interactions within these structures become more significant, requiring more energy to transition the substance from a solid to a liquid state. Consequently, while shorter-chain fatty acids may be liquid at room temperature, those with longer chains are typically solids.123