Key Components of a Soybean Solvent Extraction Plant1. Soybean Preparation Section:
- Cleaning: Soybeans are cleaned to remove impurities like stones, sand, and other debris.
- Crushing: The soybeans are crushed into small flakes to increase the surface area for better extraction.
- Conditioning and Cooking: The soybean flakes are conditioned and cooked to break down cellular structures, making it easier to extract the oil.
2. Solvent Extraction Section:
- Extractor: The conditioned soybean flakes are placed in the extractor, where they are treated with hexane or another solvent. The solvent dissolves the oil, forming a mixture called "miscella" (oil + solvent).
- Desolventizer-Toaster: After extraction, the solid residue (soybean meal) is removed from the extractor and goes through the desolventizer-toaster to evaporate the remaining solvent, making the meal safe for use in animal feed.
3. Miscella Distillation:
- Distillation Unit: The miscella (oil and solvent) is sent to the distillation unit, where the solvent is evaporated and recovered, leaving crude soybean oil behind. The recovered solvent is reused in the extraction process.
4. Solvent Recovery System:
- The vaporized hexane is condensed back into a liquid state and reused in the extractor, making the process cost-effective and environmentally friendly.
5. Oil Refining (Optional):
- Crude oil extracted through the solvent extraction process often contains impurities like free fatty acids, phospholipids, pigments, and odors. Therefore, an oil refining unit is often integrated into the plant to refine the oil further.
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