The purpose of sunflower seeds preparation is to extract a portion of oil by mechanical pressing while providing pressing cakes for sunflower oil solvent extraction plant. Main processes include: Seed Cleaning & Weighing, Crushing, Flaking, Cooking, Pressing, Oil Residue Separation.
3D animation of sunflower seeds pretreatment machine
Description of Process:
1. Cleaning & Weighing Section
Sunflower seeds from daily bin or warehouse is treated by magnetic separator, weighing scale and screener to remove impurities.
2. Crushing Section
For big-size oil seeds, crushing reduces its size to benefit flaking, while for prepressed cake, crushing turns cake to proper size and creats better oil yeild for second press or solvent extraction.
3. Flaking Section
The purpose of flaking is to flake the broken flower seeds into thin flakes (from 0.3 to 0.35mm) for the subsequent oil extraction through mechanical pressing. In addition, flakes thickness can be adjusted through roll pressure adjustment device.
4. Cooking Section
Horizontal drum rotary cooker is designed to adjust temperature and moisture of sunflower seeds flakes prior to mechanical pressing, improving oil yield greatly.
5. Pressing Section
Sunflower seeds is a kind of high oil-containing oilseed. Generally it is necessary to extract a portion of oil by mechanical pressing prior to subsequent process. Pressing cakes containing residual oil from 14% to 18% is then treated by solvent extraction while crude oil is to be filtered.
6. Oil Residue Separation Section
Due to high content of residue in crude oil, it is necessary to separate oil residue by oil drag conveyor firstly, crude oil then enters to settling tank for further separation. Collected residue is returned to pressing section while crude oil from settling tank is pumped to horizontal screw centrifuge or leaf filter for further removing impurities.
7. Cooling Section
Hydraulic turning cooler with complete set of wind network system is designed to cool down pre-pressing cakes to 55~60℃, then cakes is conveyed to extraction plant.
