What are the stages involved in palm oil production process in Nigeria?

This article provides an overview of the production process of palm oil. You can know what machines will be used in palm oil production process? What are the stages involved in palm oil production process in Nigeria? As well how to make palm oil from ripe palm fruit bunches.

Small scale palm oil processing machine with capacity 1-5tph

The Palm oil production process in Nigeria consists of the following stages.

STAGE ONE: Palm fruit reception – harvest the palm fruit from the oil palm plantation and remove the fruitlets

The major raw material needed in Palm oil production process is the ripe Palm fruits harvested from palm trees.

Ripe Palm fruits can be sourced from oil palm plantation scattered all over southern part of Nigeria.

Palm fruits can be sourced from states like Ekiti, Edo, Ondo, Anambra, Cross River, Oyo,Abia, Enugu ETC. And are usually available in large quantity during raining season from May to September and extends to December.

Palm fruit is delivered to the palm oil processing mill

STAGE TWO: Palm oil sterilization – use water or steam for palm fruit sterilization

Before processing the palm fruit bunches, the first step is to ‘cook’ them for one hour with high-pressure, high-temperature steam (300 psi, 140 degrees Celsius).

After steaming, the palm fruits becomes pliable and oily. The steam helps separate the kernel nut from its shell, which is needed to make palm kernel oil.

New designed palm fruit sterilizer machine

STAGE THREE: Palm oil threshing – separate the palm fruitlets from the bunches by rotation or vibration.

During palm fruit threshing process, the most widely used machine is drum type palm fruit threshing machine which can help us get single palm fruits.

This is small scale palm fruit threshing machine

STAGE FOUR: Palm oil digesting – crush the palm fruit to maximize the oil rate.

The palm oil digester machine is used to release the palm oil in the fruit by breaking down the oil-bearing cells. It is designed based on the principle of rotary impact. The main part of palm fruit digester is a rotating rod with many stirring arms or digester knife. During the digesting process, sterilized palm fruits will be crushing by these stirring arms, with the injection of hot steam. The temperature can reach up to 95℃ which also help soft the fruits and make the oil easily to be expelled in palm oil screw oil press. The stirring speed is about 25 rpm.

This is small scale palm fruit digester machine

STAGE FIVE: Palm pulp pressig – utilize palm oil screw press machine to extract palm oil.

In palm oil pressing stage, mechanical screw palm oil pressing machine is used to extract the oil out of digested palm pulp which is a mixture of oil, water, fibre and nuts.

After pressing by palm oil screw press machine, we can get crude palm oil. But still some impurities in crude palm oil which need to be removed in palm oil clarification stage.

New technology palm oil presser machine

STAGE SIX: Palm oil clarification – remove foreign impurities from the final palm oil to get the crude palm oil

In complete palm oil production process, clarification is the process that ensures removal of all impurities from the crude oil. In palm oil clarification process, the oil goes through the process of vibration, separation of suspended solids, purification, and finally drying and cooling. After the above process, we can get pure palm oil.

Crude palm oil clarification machine

STAGE SEVEN: Palm oil storage – the final crude palm oil will be stored in specialized tank for further selling or transportation.

The packed palm oil will be sold to market

You can sell your palm oil to edible oil market, supermarket or other industries in Nigeria that uses palm oil as a major source of raw material for production.

Now you know the stages involved in palm oil production process in Nigeria? If you want to know more detail information about palm oil production process, Henan Doing Mechanical can help you.