PROCESS AND DEVICE FOR OBTAINING OIL FROM SEEDS

Abstract

A process and a device for obtaining oil from seeds, wherein at least one of the parameters of moisture, fiber content and oil content of the pressed material is continuously measured and evaluated, thus making it possible to continuously control at least one of the following variables: moisture of the pressed material, speed of the press drive and amount of an extraction agent supplied. The oil yield can be increased, the fluctuations in the oil yield can be reduced and energy can be saved by implementing the device-related and process-related features according to the invention.

Claims

1-14. (canceled)

15. A device for obtaining oil from seeds, comprising: at least one conditioner for conditioning temperature and moisture of pressed material; at least one mechanical pressing unit; at least one conveyor unit for conveying the conditioned pressed material from the conditioner to the mechanical pressing unit; and a first measuring unit, configured to continuously acquire at least one of parameter from the group consisting of moisture, fiber content, and oil content of the pressed material, arranged in a region of the at least one conditioner.

16. The device for obtaining oil from seeds as claimed in claim 15, wherein the first measuring unit includes at least one NIR-based measuring device.

17. The device for obtaining oil from seeds according to claim 16, wherein the NIR-based measuring device is designed in NIR online technology.

18. The device for obtaining oil from seeds according to claim 15, further comprising at least one evaluation and control unit configured to evaluate measured values acquired at least with aid of the first measuring unit.

19. The device for obtaining oil from seeds according to claim 18, wherein the at least one evaluation and control unit is configured to control the at least one conditioner so that the moisture and the temperature of the pressed material is continuously regulated by the conditioner.

20. The device for obtaining oil from seeds according to claim 18, further comprising at least one supply unit for an extracting agent in a pressing chamber of the at least one mechanical pressing unit, wherein at least the oil content of the pressed material for the mechanical pressing unit is measurable by the first measuring unit, and wherein the at least one evaluation and control unit is configured to control the supply unit so that an amount of the extracting agent supplied into the pressing chamber is continuously regulated based on the oil content of the pressed material.

21. The device for obtaining oil from seeds according to claim 20, wherein carbon dioxide is used as the extracting agent.

22. The device for obtaining oil from seeds according to claim 15, including at least two stages for pressing the pressed material, wherein each of the stages has at least one conditioner, at least one conveyor unit, and at least one mechanical pressing unit, wherein the stages are arranged in succession in a conveyance direction of the pressed material.

23. A process for obtaining oil from seeds, comprising steps of: supplying a pressed material into at least one conditioner; conditioning the pressed material with the conditioner; continuously measuring moisture and/or fiber content and/or oil content of the pressed material after the conditioning; continuously evaluating measurement data with at least one evaluation and control unit; continuously controlling the conditioning to regulate the moisture of the pressed material to a predetermined target value and/or continuously controlling speed of a pressing drive and/or continuously controlling an amount of an extracting agent supplied to the pressed material in a pressing chamber of a mechanical pressing unit; conveying the conditioned pressed material to the mechanical pressing unit; and pressing the pressed material with the mechanical pressing device to separate contained oil from solid components.

24. The process for obtaining oil from seeds according to claim 23, wherein the continuous measuring of the moisture and/or the fiber content and/or the oil content of the pressed material includes carrying out at least one NIR-based measurement.

25. The process for obtaining oil from seeds according to claim 24, including using an NIR-based measuring device in NIR online technology to carry out the at least one NIR-based measurement.

26. The process for obtaining oil from seeds according to claim 23, including using carbon dioxide as the extracting agent.

27. The process for obtaining oil from seeds according to claim 23, wherein the process is formed in at least two stages, wherein the pressed material is conditioned and initially pressed in a first stage and is conditioned and re-pressed in at least one second stage.

28. The process for obtaining oil from seeds according to claim 23, including using a device for obtaining oil from seeds, comprising: at least one conditioner for conditioning temperature and moisture of pressed material; at least one mechanical pressing unit; at least one conveyor unit for conveying the conditioned pressed material from the conditioner to the mechanical pressing unit; and a first measuring unit, configured to continuously acquire at least one of parameter from the group consisting of moisture, fiber content, and oil content of the pressed material, arranged in a region of the at least one conditioner.

Description

[0101] Exemplary embodiments of the process according to the invention and the device according to the invention are schematically shown in the figures. In the figures:

[0102] FIG. 1: shows a schematic block diagram of a device according to the invention for obtaining oil from seeds and

[0103] FIG. 2: shows a schematic diagram of a process according to the invention for obtaining oil from seeds.

[0104] FIG. 1 shows a schematic block diagram of an embodiment of a device according to the invention for obtaining oil from seeds (1). The device for obtaining oil from seeds (1) has a conditioner (2), using which supplied seeds or press cake can be conditioned with respect to moisture and temperature of the pressed material. For this purpose, the device for obtaining oil from seeds (1) has a steam regulating unit (3), using which a controlled amount of hot steam can be supplied to the conditioner (2). The temperature of the vapors escaping from the conditioner (2) is measurable with the aid of a temperature sensor (4). The measurement data of the temperature sensor (4) are transmittable for evaluation to an evaluation and control unit (5).

[0105] A conveyor unit (6) adjoins the conditioner (2), using which the conditioned pressed material can be conveyed toward a mechanical pressing unit (11). A first measuring point (7) is arranged in the region of the conveyor unit (6), which has measuring means for measuring the moisture, the fiber content, and the oil content of the pressed material.

[0106] The first measuring point (7) preferably has at least one NIR-based measuring device for this purpose, which is particularly preferably embodied in NIR online technology.

[0107] In the illustrated exemplary embodiment of a device according to the invention for obtaining oil from seeds (1), a metering device (10), using which the amount of the pressed material supplied into the mechanical pressing unit (11) can be regulated, is arranged before the mechanical pressing unit (11).

[0108] The device for obtaining oil from seeds (1) furthermore has a supply unit (12) for an extracting agent, using which an extracting agent is introducible into the pressing chamber of the mechanical pressing unit (11). A pressure sensor (8) and a flow sensor (9) for measuring the amount of extracting agent introduced into the pressing chamber are arranged in the region of the feedline of the supply unit (12), so that a regulation of the supplied amount of extracting agent is implementable with the aid of the evaluation and control unit (5).

[0109] A second measuring point (13), which has measuring means at least for determining the oil content of the press cake exiting from the mechanical pressing unit (11), is arranged in the conveyance direction after the mechanical pressing unit (11).

[0110] In one preferred embodiment of the invention, the second measuring point (13) has at least one NIR-based measuring device for this purpose, which is particularly preferably embodied in NIR online technology.

[0111] FIG. 2 shows a schematic view of a flow chart of an exemplary embodiment of a process according to the invention for obtaining oil from seeds.

[0112] The seeds are first conditioned with respect to the temperature and the moisture by the supply of hot steam. The conditioned pressed material is conveyed past a first measuring point (7) to a mechanical pressing unit (11). At the first measuring point (7), the moisture, the fiber content, and the oil content of the pressed material are continuously measured with the aid of an NIR-based measuring device, which is based on NIR online technology. The pressed material is pressed using the mechanical pressing unit (11), so that the oil component is separated from the solid components. The raw oil and the press cake exit from the mechanical pressing unit (11). At least the oil content of the press cake is continuously measured in the region of the exiting press cake with the aid of a second measuring point (13), wherein preferably an NIR-based measuring device, particularly preferably according to NIR online technology, is used.

[0113] The continuously acquired measured values with respect to the moisture of the pressed material after the conditioning are evaluated and used for the continuous control of the steam regulation, so that moisture and temperature of the pressed material are as close as possible to predetermined target values after the conditioning.

[0114] The continuously acquired measured values with respect to the fiber content of the pressed material are evaluated and used for the continuous control of the speed of the pressing drive, so that a speed of the pressing drive adapted to the fiber content of the pressed material is always regulated.

[0115] The continuously acquired measured values with respect to the oil content of the pressed material after the conditioning are evaluated and used for the continuous control of the amount of the extracting agent supplied during the pressing, so that an amount of extracting agent adapted to the oil content of the pressed material is always supplied.