Vegetable oils are important ingredients in a wide range of food production processes. They feature in a variety of recipes from homemade meals to commercial food products. You can extract vegetable oil from several types of oil-rich fruits, plant matter or seeds. Rapeseed, Sunflower and Soybean oil come from seeds. Yet oils like olive and palm oil come from fruits.

There are several ways to extract vegetable oils from oil-rich seeds and fruits. These include hydrogenation, deodorization and mechanical extraction. During the oil extraction processes, it is common for the solid residue to mix with the oil. The efficient separation of the solid and liquid mixtures adds value to the entire operation.

Centrifugation is one of the most efficient methods for separating solids from liquid vegetable oil. The solid residue can be used to make a range of valuable by-products such as animal feeds. This article focuses on Interfil’s unique self-cleaning IC45AV Centrifuge. Read on if you would like to know how the IC45AV centrifuge works.

How the IC45AV Centrifuge Works

Centrifuges are devices that use centrifugal force to separate substances with varying density. They generate centrifugal force by spinning the mixtures at high speeds. The forces push dense contents outward and keep the less dense ones closer to the center of the centrifuge. The centrifuge design and purpose facilitates the appropriate collection of the separated substances.

The IC45AV is a high-speed centrifuge that is used for substances that are difficult to separate. It is popular in the food processing industry because of its high efficiency and robust design. The IC45AV centrifuge was recently used by a rapeseed oil factory in the UK to enhance productivity.

The factory’s conventional plate and frame pressure filters had become inefficient. The filtration media would clog so frequently that the cost of oil production was uneconomical. The IC45AV centrifuge eliminated crushed seed particles from the rapeseed oil. Next, the oil went through a finer industrial filtration process. This reduced the risk of clogging the filtration media. This improved not only the production rate of the factory but also the quality of the oil.

Unique Features of the IC45AV Centrifuge

The benefits of using an IC45AV centrifuge to separate solids from liquids are immense. Below are some of the reasons why IC45AV is one of the most popular centrifuges in the market.

Automated Operation

Automatic centrifuges offer several operational advantages to manual alternatives. The IC45AV centrifuge can sustain autonomous operation for several hours. Its automated functions support high performance with minimal human input. Some of these functions include

– Automatic self-cleaning

– Solid discharge auto extraction

– Continuous feed operation

High Flow Rate

The flow rate of a centrifuge refers to the volume of fluid that it can process over time. IC45AV centrifuges have a flow rate ranging from 0 – 4800 litres per hour. They can also achieve a high G force of up to 3,000 gravities at 4,000 rpm. The flow rate necessary for vegetable oil separation is 1 – 5 litres per minute or 300 litres per hour.

Versatile Design

The IC45AV centrifuge has a robust yet lightweight structure. It also has a compact design that enables it to work well in small spaces. It comes with four sturdy support points that can anchor it to the ground or a trolley for mobility.

Industrial processes consist of multiple operations that affect the overall cost of production. Keeping the cost of each operation low can increase profits. In addition to its cost-saving features, the IC45AV centrifuge comes with a food-grade internal lining. This makes it ideal for centrifugation of food products.

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