Crude oil, freshly extracted from seed contains undesirable impurities, which must be removed. These include free fatty acids, phosphatides, colour pigments and fine particles.
The filter used for this is a pressure leaf type, which is commonly used in the edible oil industry for the removal of adsorbent.
Technical specifications | |
Reactor vessel | |
Material | stainless steel |
Total volume | 45 litres |
Working volume | 25 litres |
Diameter | 0.30m |
Height | 0.65m |
Heating element | 3.0kW |
Cooling coil area | 0.12m² |
Agitator speed | 250-1800rpm |
Reagent vessel | |
Material | stainless steel |
Working volume | 3 litres |
Diameter | 0.165m |
Height | 0.20m |
Heating element | 1kW |
Earth hopper | |
Material | stainless steel |
Volume | 0.3 litre |
Pressure leaf filter | |
Material | stainless steel |
Filter volume | 3.8 litres |
Filter cake capacity | 1 litre |
Filtering area | 0.09m² |
Filter screen | 110 mesh (0.3mm wire) |
Maximum pressure | 3.0 bar |
Vacuum pump | |
Type | liquid-ring |
Sealant | water |
Working vacuum | 75mm Hg (ABS) |
Sealant flow rate | 8 l/m |
Performance | |||
Independent tests carried out by Manchester Metropolitan University, Hollings Faculty using crude Rapeseed oil gave the following analytical results | |||
| Crude Oil | Neutralised | Bleached |
Iodine value | 117 | 117 | 117 |
Free fatty acid | 1.5% | 0.12% | 0.1% |
| |||
Colour | 70 Yellow | 50 Yellow | 20 Yellow |
| 7 Red | 3.3 Red | 0.5 Red |
| 3.2 Blue |
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Soap in oil | — | <100ppm | nil |
Peroxide | 0.4 meguiv/kg | nil | nil |