Main processes in palm oil mill – palm oil mill plant flow chart

The typical processes to produce palm oil include palm bunches reception, palm bunches sterilization, palm threshing, palm fruit digestion, palm pulp pressing, palm oil clarification, palm oil drying and palm oil storage and packing.

• Palm fruit reception – harvest the palm fruit from the oil palm plantation and remove the fruitlets
• Palm oil sterilization – use water or steam t for palm fruit sterilization
• Palm oil threshing – separate the palm fruitlets from the bunches by rotation or vibration
• Palm oil digestion – crush the palm fruit to maximize the oil rate
• Palm pulp pressing – utilize palm oil processing machines to extract palm oil
• Palm oil clarification – remove foreign impurities from the final palm oil to get the crude palm oil
• Palm oil storage – the final crude palm oil will be stored in specialized tank for further selling or transportation. 

Palm oil physical refining process

Oil physical refining process, also called as oil steam refining. During the degumming section in the palm oil milling plant, the gum will be removed from palm oil by utilizing phosphoric acid or citric acid. Next to bleaching section, the coloring matter and other metal ions will be absorbed or removed. Then, in the deacidification and and deodorization section, the crude palm oil will be processed within low pressure and high temperature. Through live stem, the FFA will be stripped of and the odors and colors will be removed or absorbed.

Palm oil chemical refining process

During the palm oil chemical refining process, the FFA will be removed and the neutralized crude palm oil and soap stock will be produced. And the soap stock will be separated from palm oil by using of high-speed separator. And the color pigments and the metal ions will be removed from the neutralized oil. If the crude palm oil contains high carotene, high FFA (more than 5% ) and relative low phosphatides, it will be great to have the chemical refining process to reduce the refining losses and the operation costs.

Complete Palm Oil Milling and Refining Plant