Soybean oil is one of the common edible oils in daily life, and its processing process includes many links, from raw material pretreatment to finished product refining, each step is very important. Next, let’s learn more about the main steps of soybean oil processing in soybean oil plant.

Pretreatment of raw materials

Pretreatment of raw materials is the first step in soybean oil production, aiming at preparing for the subsequent oil extraction. This stage mainly includes the following steps:

1. Cleaning: Impurities in soybeans, such as silt, stones and metal chips, are removed by screening and winnowing to ensure the purity of raw materials.

2. Shelling: Removing the seed coat on the surface of soybeans is helpful to improve the oil yield.

3. Crushing: Crushing soybeans into small particles to increase the surface area and create conditions for subsequent processes.

4. Softening: Adjust the moisture and temperature of soybeans by heating or humidifying to make the soybean soft and easy to flake.

5. Flaking: The processed soybeans are pressed into thin slices to further increase the contact area and improve the oil extraction efficiency.

6. Cooking: Heat the soybean after flaking to destroy the cell structure and promote the release of oil.

It should be noted that the pretreatment process may be adjusted according to different oil extraction processes. For example, if oil is extracted by solvent extraction method, it is necessary to increase puffing treatment to make the soybean form porous structure, which is beneficial to solvent penetration.

Oil extraction

Oil extraction is the core of the whole processing process. At present, there are two main processes: pressing and solvent extraction.

Pressing method: Oil is directly squeezed out of soybeans by mechanical pressure, which is suitable for small-scale processing.

Solvent extraction method: The oil in soybeans is leached by solvent, which is suitable for large-scale industrial production. This method has higher oil yield, but it needs to strictly control the solvent residue.

Oil refining

The extracted crude oil contains some impurities, such as colloid, free fatty acid, pigment and odor substances, so it needs further refining. The refining process usually includes degumming, deacidification, decoloration and deodorization, etc., and finally soybean oil with clear color and pure taste is obtained.

The processing of soybean oil in soybean oil plant is a complex and delicate process, from the pretreatment of raw materials to the extraction of oil, and then to refining, every step affects the quality of the final product. With the progress of science and technology, the processing technology of soybean oil is constantly optimized, which not only improves the oil yield, but also ensures the safety and health of the products, providing people with high-quality edible oil.