RICE MILLING AND QUALITY CONTROL IN MODERN RICE MILLS

Dr ASHOK KUMAR

Paddy is subjected to a number of post-harvest operations like handling storage, drying, and
milling, etc. to bring it in consumable form, that is rice. Various factors affecting quality and
recovery of head rice during these operations were observed in a large modern rice milling plant
in Punjab having installed capacity of 120 t/h. Based on these observations. It was found that if
sound, clean and dry paddy is selected at the time of purchase and is subjected to proper storage,
drying and milling, then quality of rice can be improved considerably and percentage of head
rice can be increased by 5-8%.

Introduction:

Flow Chart

Paddy procurement Paddy pre-cleaning Paddy drying & storage

Paddy steaming,
soaking & drying

Paddy cleaning

Paddy de-stoning

Paddy de-husking

Powder & bran removal

Polishing

Grading & Sorting

Packing & dispatch

 Rice milling industry is one of the most important agro based industries in Punjab. The main
aim of rice miller is to get maximum possible recovery of head rice confirming to a good
quality to get maximum profit (as per specification laid down by Food Corporation of India).
However, there are a number of problems which hinder it achievement. Factors which
generally affect the end quality and recovery as discussed are based on various day to day
observations and modifications which were carried out over a period of three year when the
author was working in a large modern rice milling plant having installed capacity of 120t/h
located at District Sangrur of Punjab. It was Observed that the end quality and recovery of
rice improved considerably by taking care of these factors.

2. Factors Affecting Quality and Recovery

There are numerous factors which affect quality and recovery of head rice at various
stages of the rice milling process. These can be broadly classified in the following categories:

1. During purchase of paddy

a) Moisture content
b) Percentage of foreign matter
c) Soundness (percent immature/shriveled/damaged) of paddy
2. During Storage of paddy
a) Stacking arrangements
b) Aeration , covering and shuffling of stacks
3. During drying of paddy
a) Temperature of drying air and out coming grains
b) Temperature time
4. During milling of paddy-Checking and adjustments of various machines at the
a) Clearing action
b) Shelling section
c) Whitening section
d) Conveying and handling section

2.1 During purchase of paddy

The first and the foremost thing to get good quality and recovery of rice is to select
right quality of paddy at the time of purchase by taking into account the following factors:
 i) Moisture content

Maximum permissible limit for moisture set by FCI is 18 %(w.b.) for paddy
procurement. It has been seen that , in general , the moisture content of paddy reaching the
markets is in the range of 20-22%.Higher the moisture content, lower will be the recovery as
paddy is dried to 14% moisture content before milling. High moisture paddy us also more
susceptible to deterioration during storage.

ii) Foreign matter purchase

Due to lack of different mechanical cleaning equipment in the markets, the Percentage of
foreign matter is paddy is as high as 3-5% as against the prescribed standards of 1-2% . The
foreign matter consists of chaff, dust, stones, clay balls etc. which create problems by
chocking pipes and sieves in the cleaning section. Presence of dust and other fine particles
also causes air pollution. Recovery is directly affected by foreign matter as it is a waste and is
to be removed during cleaning before shelling. iii) Soundness (percent immature/ shriveled /
damaged) of paddy and sound grains give higher yield of head rice of good quality. The
presence of immature, shriveled, damaged and hollow kernels should be minimum.
Soundness can be checked physically and by knowing the density of paddy. Low density
paddy contains more immature, shriveled and hollow kernels. Almost all the grains out of
these kernels are thin and chalky and get broken during hulling and whitening thus increasing
the percentage of brokens.

2.2 During the Storage

As the paddy arrives from the markets to mill, it is generally stored on open plinths, i.e. CAP
storage. Following factors should be taken care of to avoid deterioration during storage.

a) Stacking arrangement
To avoid moisture migration from floor to bag and for proper aeration, bags should be
stacked on damp proof and rat proof plinths providing proper wooden crate dunnage.
Normally the height of stack is limited to 15-16 layers of bag. If the height of the stack is
 increased, there are chances of developing fissures and cracks in the bottom layers due to
over loading thus, increasing broken during milling.

b) Aeration, covering and shuffling of stacks

To avoid deterioration during storage, proper covering , aeration and shuffling of stack
is needed. Covers should be removed when the weather is clear and dry and replaced before
right and also when the relative humidity of ambient air is more than 70%. Shuffling of the
stacks is necessary to remove moisture gradients which are formed because the portion of the
stacks directly exposed to atmosphere dry more than the those in the inner portion. Non-
uniform initial moisture content of paddy will result into non-uniform final moisture content
when it passes through the dryers and this will increase the percentage of brokens during
milling. stacks having higher moisture content paddy should be sent for drying and milling
on priority as it is not safe to store higher moisture paddy for longer durations.

2.3 During drying of paddy

Paddy is recommended to be dried to 14-15% moisture content before milling treatments to

which paddy is subjected during drying have considerable effect on the percentage of brokens.
Some of the points to be taken care of during drying are listed below:

a) Temperature of drying air and out coming grains

Drying air temperature is selected depending upon the initial moisture content of paddy.
If the moisture content of paddy before drying is in the range of 17-18% single stage drying
is done and for paddy having more than 18 % moisture, double stage drying should be done .
To reduce moisture up to 18 % moisture content , higher drying temperature (60-70ºC) can
be used. However, to reduce moisture from 18% or less to 14%, drying temperature should
not exceed to 50ºC, as the moisture movement from interior of the grain to the surface is very
slow at this stage thus, increasing the percentage of brokens considerably.

b) Temperature time
 Tempering for at least 12 – 18 h is necessary after each stage of drying so that the
moisture is uniform throughout the grain and the grains cool down to ambient temperature
(Bar, 1980)

2.4 During milling

Continuous inspection and adjustment of the machines is necessary to achieve proper

quality and recovery of rice. There are mainly three sections in a rice mill, i.e. cleaning,
hulling (shelling) and whitening. Proper control and adjustments of each section is necessary
to get desired results. Some of the important points are discussed below:

a) Cleaning section
Cleaning section of rice mill normally comprises of cleaners, aspirators, destoners
and magnetic separators. These machines should be adjusted in such a way that all the
foreign matter, i.e. chaff, dust, stones, immature grains and metallic particle etc. are removed
from paddy. The presence of this fraction is not only harmful to machines but also affects the
end quality as these get mixed with final product. At the same time, it should be insured that
paddy grains do not go along with the foreign matter. Chocking and overflowing of the
screens should be avoided. If the amount of foreign matter is more than he normal, feed rate
of the cleaners may be decreased foe effective sieving of the foreign matter and to avoid
overflowing with the impurities.

b) Shelling section

Shelling section comprises of rubber roll hullers, husk aspirators and paddy separators.
Dehusking is an important operation in the rice milling process which affects recovery and
broken percentage. Rubber roll huller requires constant attention and adjustment by skilled
operators to achieve proper recovery of head rice. Feed rat should be adjusted in such a way that
material falls in a uniform layer over entire length of the rollers. Pressure of the rubber rolls
should be adjusted in such a way that degree of shelling is around 85%. Higher pressure gives
higher degree of shelling but increases the percentage of broken and may damage the machine.
Proper pressure should remove the husk without inducing any curling effect on husk. If the
pressure is too high, curled husk is produced and possibility of damage to the rolls increases.
Choking of the feed gate should be avoided which results non-uniform wearing of the rolls,
reduces shelling efficiency and capacity of machines. Hardness of the rubber should be proper
and uniform throughout. Non-uniform hardness and presence of cavity holes blow in the rubber
not only affects adversely the milling quality but also the life of the roll. Cooling arrangements
for the rubber roll is also necessary as the temperature of rubber goes up due to friction and at the
higher temperatures; the rubber loses its hardness. Flapper/baffles of husk aspirators should be
adjusted correctly so that husk is removed the same time that no rice grain is carried away along
with husk as it will directly reduce the recovery.

Paddy and brown rice mixture from the husk aspirator are fed to pady separator for separating
paddy and brown rice. Stroke length and the slope of paddy separator should be adjusted in such
a way that the brown rice is totally free from paddy grain and the percentage of brown rice going
along with paddy should be minimum. Rice grain going along with return paddy are more
susceptible to breakage during second pass through the huller. Continuous inspection of both
outlets of paddy separator is necessary to check that the separation is taking place properly.

c) Whitening section

This section consists of whitening/ polishing machines (vertical type or horizontal type), bran
sifting machines and graders/plan sifters. Whitening is done generally in two or more stages.

Whitener is the most crucial machine, the adjustment of which has great effect on
recovery and quality of rice. The gap between the stone, brakes and sieves should be properly
adjusted so that the grain is not subjected to excessive pressure and friction during whitening
which will lead to the increase in brokens and reduce recovery. If the rice discharged from
whitener is too warm, blunted or excessively then, the pressure on the grain is more and should
be decreased accordingly. Whitening should be gradual and uniform in all the stages. Air
aspiration is necessary to cool the rice during whitening because the rise in temperature increases
breakage and dissolves the fatty substances of bran layer and germs. Heat, moisture and partial
melting of fatty acids help bran to cake and clog the screen thus affecting the performance of the
whitener. All the bearings and other moving parts of the screen should be checked and greased
regularly. Vibrations produced in the machine due to eccentricity also increases breakage if rice.
 It has been seen that 5-6% degree of polish is enough to meet FCI standards and local
markets. Higher the degree of polish, lower will be the rice recovery and higher the percentage of
brokens as rice is subjected to more abrasion and heating.

d) Conveying and handling equipments

A part from the equipments discussed earlier, conveying and handling equipments also
affect the recovery of head rice. Among the conveyors belt conveyor cause minimum damage to
the product. However, in case of drag/chain conveyors, a considerable number of grains which
are trapped between trough and pedals and between sprockets and chain are broken. Whenever
paddy is conveyed by gravity flow through spouts, the inner surface of the spout should be
smooth. Dead boxes should be provided at bends so that grain strikes on grains rather than on
metallic surface to reduce brokens. Similarly, total emptying of the silos and bins should not be
done frequently to check breakage.

Conclusions

Based on actual observations in a large modern rice mill, it can be concluded that if
sound, clean and dry paddy is purchased and proper storage, drying and milling is done, then
quality and recovery of head rice can be improved considerably.