Production of Vegetable Oils and Fats

Modern manufacturing of vegetable oils can be considered as a set of unit operations, which are applied depending on the composition of the crop, local or regional conditions and the intended end use. Because of the quick deterioration of the fruit, pulp oils are processed immediately after harvesting close 

Oilseeds, unlike pulp oil fruits, can easily be transported and stored over long periods in ventilated silos. Industrial extraction usually takes place close to the location where the crude oil is further processed. Preparatory steps prior to oil 

After pre-treatment of the seeds, the oil is extracted and separated from the meal. Oil extraction can be performed mechanically (cold pressing or expelling) or chemically by solvent extraction. 

During solvent extraction, in the majority of cases hexane is used to wash the conditioned raw materials, typically in a counter current extractor. Hexane is removed from the oil through distillation, and from the cake through steam stripping in a multi-stage counter current toaster and recovered for reuse. EHS issues during solvent extraction are odour and volatile organic compounds, VOC. Extraction plants and processes should in each case comply with the solvent emission directives in force. Efforts to replace hexane as the solvent of choice by aqueous enzymatic methods or supercritical fluids have not yet found industrial acceptance. 

Mechanical extraction does not use solvent extracts. It is made the traditional way, i.e. separation of the oil from the solid particles by squeezing the oil out of the crushed mass of seeds using several different types of mechanical extraction often in small-scale operations. This method is typically used to produce the more traditional oils e.g. olive oil) and it is preferred by most health-food customers. 

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Although the main input in the production of vegetable oils and fats comes from agriculture, there are close links with sectors such as chemical and capital goods, which play highly important roles as depicted in Figure... 

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