Chapter Three

The Process Technology of Oil and Fat Industries

Fat and oil
Oils and fats belong to a group of organic compounds known as lipids. Oils and fats are natural
occurring esters. Fats are found in animals. Oils are found in both animals and plants. Fats and
oils are esters (fatty acids + glycerol). Fatty acids containing 12-18 Carbon atoms per molecule

Hydrolysis of fats yields glycerol and long-chain fatty acids. Thus, tristearin gives glycerol and
three molecules of stearic acid on hydrolysis. As these examples indicate, most naturally
occurring fatty acids possess an even number of carbon atoms and an un-branched carbon chain.
The carbon chain may be saturated or it can contain one or more double bonds. When double
bonds are present, they are almost always cis. Acyl groups containing 14–20 carbon atoms are
the most abundant in triacylglycerols.

A few fatty acids with Trans double bonds (Trans fatty acids) occur naturally, but the major
source of trans fats comes from the processing of natural fats and oils. Furthermore, the same
catalysts that promote hydrogenation promote the reverse process—dehydrogenation—by which
new double bonds, usually Trans, are introduced in the acyl group. Fatty acids occur naturally in
forms other than as glyceryl triesters, and we‘ll see numerous examples as we go through the
chapter. One recently discovered fatty acid derivative is anandamide.

Fatty acids (FAs) are carboxylic acids obtained mainly from the hydrolysis of triglycerides
(TGs), which are uncharged glycerol esters (i.e., neutral fats).

Overview of Fatty Acid

Fatty acids are carbon chains with a methyl group at one end of the molecule (designated omega,
o) and a carboxyl group at the other end. The carbon atom next to the carboxyl group is called α-
carbon and the subsequent one the β-carbon. The letter ո is also often used instead of the Greek
ὠ indicate the position of the double bond closest to the methyl end. The systematic

1
nomenclature for fatty acids may also indicate the location of double bonds with reference to the
carboxyl group (∆).

Saturated fatty acids

Saturated fatty acids are ‗filled‘ (saturated) with hydrogen. Most saturated fatty acids are straight
hydrocarbon chains with an even number of carbon atoms. The most common fatty acids contain
12–22 carbon atoms.

Unsaturated fatty acids

Monounsaturated fatty acids have one carbon–carbon double bond, which can occur in different
positions. The most common monoenes have a chain length of 16–22 and a double bond with the
cis configuration. This means that the hydrogen atoms on either side of the double bond are
oriented in the same direction. Transisomers may be produced during industrial processing
(hydrogenation) of un-saturated oils and in the gastrointestinal tract of ruminants. The presence
of a double bond causes restriction in the mobility of the acyl chain at that point. The cis
configuration gives a kink in the molecular shape and cisfatty acids are thermodynamically less
stable than the transforms. The cisfatty acids have lower melting points than the transfatty acids
or their saturated counterparts.

In polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs): the first double bond may be found between the third
and the fourth carbon atom from the ὠ-carbon; these are called ὠ-3 fatty acids. If the first double
bond is between the sixth and seventh carbon atom, then they are called ὠ-6 fatty acids. The
double bonds in PUFAs are separated from each other by a methylene grouping.

2
Types of fatty acids:
 Lauric acid* CH3(CH2)10COOH Saturated
 Palmatic acid* CH3(CH2)14COOH Saturated
 Stearic acid* CH3(CH2)16COOH Saturated
 Oleic oxide** CH3(CH2)7CH=CH(CH2)7COOH Unsaturated
 Linoleic acid*** CH3(CH2)4CH=CHCH2CH=CH(CH2)7COOH Unsaturated
 Linoleic acid*** CH3CH2CH=CHCH2CH=CHCH2CH=CH(CH2)7COOH Unsaturated
Note: * Saturated: C-C single bonds; ** Unsaturated (monounsaturated): C=C double bonds and
*** Unsaturated (polyunsaturated): C=C double bonds
The Difference between Fats and Oils
 Fats are solids at room temperature while oils are liquids at room temperature.
 The melting points of fats are higher than the melting points of oils.
The Important of Oils and Fats:
 Source of energy Source of nutrients
 Protection
 Thermal insulation
Differences between Saturated and Unsaturated Fats
 Saturated fats: Fats which contain esters of glycerol‘s and saturated fatty acids
 Saturated fatty acids: has all carbon atoms joined together by single carbon-carbon (– C –
C –) covalent bonds.
 Unsaturated fats: Fats which contain esters of glycerol‘s and unsaturated fatty acids
Unsaturated fatty acids: contain single (– C – C –) and double (– C = C –) covalent
bonds.

3
The Difference between Saturated and Unsaturated Fats
Saturated Fats Unsaturated Fats
Consist of saturated fatty acids. Saturated Consist of unsaturated fatty acids, which
fatty acids have no double bonds between the contain one or more than one double bond in
carbon atoms of the fatty acid chains the fatty acid chains.
Higher melting point Lower melting point
Exist as solid at room temperature Exist as liquid at room temperature
Cannot be hydrogenated Can be hydrogenated
High cholesterol content No cholesterol content

Requirements for and Uses of Fatty Acids in Human Nutrition

Although data on the required intake of essential fatty ac-ids are relatively few, the adequate
intakes of linoleic acid (18:2 ὠ-6) and α-linoleic acid (18:3 ὠ-3) should be 2% and 1% of total
energy, respectively. Present evidence suggests that 0.2–0.3% of the energy should be derived
from pre-formed very long-chain ὠ-3 PUFAs (EPA and DHA) to avoid signs or symptoms of
deficiency. This corresponds to approximately 0.5g of theseo-3 fatty acids per day. It should be
stressed that this is the minimum intake to avoid clinical symptoms of deficiency. It has been
suggested that the ratio between ὠ-3 and ὠ-6 fatty acids should be 1:4 as compared to1:10 in
modern dietary habits, but the experimental basis for this suggestion is rather weak.

Advantages of Using Palm Oil

1. Palm oil is commonly used in a wide range of foods
 Good for the human diet
 Inexpensive
2. The Importance of the Palm Oil Industry to Our Country
4
  Contributing towards global business
 Employment opportunities
 Reduced cost of living Palm Oil

Fat and Oil Processing

Coconut oil is derived from copra, which is the dried kernel of coconut. It is the white ‗meat‘
formed inside the coconut. Approximately 50% of the kernel is moisture, 35% oil, 7%
carbohydrate, and 3–3.5% fiber and protein. Copra also has the highest oil content (65–70%) of
all the oil-bearing crops. The extraction of coconut oil remains a village-level process in many
developing countries.

Raw materials: sun flower seed, peanut, soybean, rapeseed, rice bran, cotton seed, corn germ,
sesame, palm fruit, palm kernel, etc.

Figure: Different categories of raw materials

5
(1) Raw material preparation: This includes the removal of husks, seed coats and separating
the seeds from the chaff. It also removes stones and debris.
(2) Extraction: This can be mechanical using an oil press, expeller or a pestle and mortar.
Solvent extraction is rarely used in small-scale production of oil.
(3) Clarification: Fine pulp, resins and water are removed at this stage. Allowing the oil to stand
undisturbed for a few days promotes clarification, after which the up-per layer is removed. If
further clarification is required the oil can be filtered through a filter cloth. The oil may be heated
to evaporate any remaining water.
(4) Packaging and storage: In order to increase shelf life and prevent rancidity, the oils may be
stored in clean, dry glass or plastic containers. The containers are tinted/ colored to prevent
oxidation with sunlight. If stored correctly, the expected shelf life is 6–12 months.

Figure: Small-scale processing of groundnuts (peanuts)

6
The oil and fat products used for edible purposes can be divided into two distinct classes: liquid
oils, such as olive oil, peanut oil, soybean oil, or sunflower oil; and plastic fats, such as lard,
shortening, butter, and margarine. The physical nature of the fatty material is unimportant for
some uses, but the consistency is a matter of consequence for other products. As a dressing on
green salads, for example, liquid oil is used to provide a coating on the ingredients; a plastic fat
such as lard or butter would be unsuitable. Spreads for bread, foods that require a highly
developed dough structure, or icings and fillings with a plastic structure require plastic fats rather
than liquid oils.

For reasons related to both history and climate, there are pronounced geographic patterns of
consumption of fats and oils. The ancestors of the present inhabitants of central and northern
Europe obtained their edible fats almost exclusively from domestic animals.

More than 90 % of the world production of fats and oils is used in edible products, and the
objective of most processing steps is to convert crude fats of low palatability or undesirable
physical form into refined products that meet the regional requirements for food fats.

About 40 % of the dietary fat in the developed countries comes from isolated fats and oils, with
60 % obtained from basic foods, whereas in the less developed countries most of the dietary fat
is obtained from fruits, cereals, vegetables, dairy products, and meats, and relatively little is
consumed in the form of isolated fat products. The quantities of fats and oils in conventional
food supplies vary over wide ranges. Most fruits and vegetables have from 0.1 to 2.0 percent fat,
with the exception of avocados and olives, which are exceptional in their high fat content.
Cereals range from 1 to 7 %, and nuts may contain as much as 70 % fat.

General methods of extraction

The raw materials for the fat and oil industry are animal by-products from the slaughter of cattle,
hogs, and sheep; fatty fish and marine mammals; a few fleshy fruits (palm and olive); and
various oilseeds. Most oilseeds are grown specifically for processing to oils and protein meals,
but several important vegetable oils are obtained from by-product raw materials. Cottonseed is a
by-product of cotton grown for fiber, and corn oil is obtained from the corn germ that

7
accumulates from the corn-milling industry, whose primary products are corn grits, starch, and
syrup.

Figure: Extraction and refinement of edible oil from oilseed

Fats may be recovered from oil-bearing tissues by three general methods, with varying degrees
of mechanical simplicity: (1) rendering, (2) pressing with mechanical presses, and (3) extracting
with volatile solvents.

Rendering
Regardless of the process used, the first stage is to crush and break the tissue into small pieces.
Using a batch or continuous cooker, the fats are released from the tis-sues during the rendering
process.
Wet Rendering
This is the simplest and oldest method, which involves cooking the tissues in water. Using steam
under pressure (temperature up to 140 °C), for 2–3 h, the denatured protein and other substances
settle at the bottom with the fat floating to the top.
Dry Rendering
This is the most modern technique and involves cooking the tissues in their own fat at about
115–120 °C in steam-jacketed vessels that are agitated. No water or steam is added in this
process (hence it is called dry rendering). The cooking time can vary between 2 and 4 h.

8
The crudest method of rendering oil from oleaginous fruits, still practiced in some countries,
consists of heaping them in piles, exposing them to the sun, and collecting the oil that exudes. In
a somewhat improved form, this process is used in the preparation of palm oil; the fresh palm
fruits are boiled in water, and the oil is skimmed from the surface. Such processes can be used
only with seeds or fruits (such as olive and palm) that contain large quantities of easily released
fatty matter.

The rendering process is applied on a large scale to the production of animal fats such as tallow,
lard, bone fat, and whale oil. It consists of cutting or chopping the fatty tissue into small pieces
that are boiled in open vats or cooked in steam digesters. The fat gradually liberated from the
cells, floats to the surface of the water, where it is collected by skimming. The membranous
matter (greaves) is separated from the aqueous (gluey) phase by pressing in hydraulic or screw
presses; additional fat is thereby obtained. The residue is used for animal feed or fertilizer.
Several centrifugal separation processes were developed in the 1960s. Cells of the fatty tissues
are ruptured in special disintegrators under close temperature control. The protein tissue is
separated from the liquid phase in a desludging type of centrifuge, following which a second
centrifuge separates the fat from the aqueous protein layer. Compared with conventional
rendering, the centrifugal methods provide a higher yield of better-quality fat, and the separated
protein has potential as an edible meat product.

9
 Figure: Coconut oil processing.

Figure: Structures of an oilseed cell

Pressing Processes
With many oil-bearing seeds and nuts, rendering will not liberate the oil from the cellular
structures in which it is held. In these cases the cell walls are broken by grinding, flaking, rolling,

10
or pressing under high pressures to liberate the oil. The general sequence of modern operations in
pressing oilseeds and nuts is as follows:
(1) The seeds are passed over magnetic separators to remove any stray bits of metal;
(2) If necessary, the shells or hulls are removed;
(3) The kernels or meats are converted to coarse meal by grinding them between grooved
rollers or with special types of hammer mills; and
(4) They are pressed in hydraulic or screw presses with or without preliminary heating,
depending on the type of oil-bearing material and the quality of oil desired.
Oil expressed without heating contains the least amount of impurities and is often of edible
quality without refining or further processing. Such oils are known as cold-drawn, cold-pressed,
or virgin oils. Pressing the coarse meal while it is heated removes more oil and also greater
quantities of non-glyceride impurities such as phospholipids, color bodies, and un-saponifiable
matter. Such oil is more highly colored than cold-pressed oils. Residual meals are concentrated
sources of high-quality protein and are generally used in animal feeds.
Large-Scale Processing
Large-scale extraction of oils from seeds is achieved through pressing and/or solvent extraction.
Most industrial level oil processing involves solvent extraction, with the refining steps including
alkali neutralization, bleaching and deodorizing.

11
 Figure: Flow diagram of industrial oil refining process
Table 5.Selected edible oils and fats and their methods of processing as illustrations of
processing methods
Source Method of processing
Canola Pre-press solvent extraction
Coconut Hard pressing
Corn (maize) Wet or dry milling and pre-press solvent extraction
Cottonseed Hard pressing, pre-pressing or direct solvent extraction
Palm and Palm kernel Hard pressing
Peanut Hard pressing or pre-press solvent extraction
Sunflower Pre-press solvent extraction
Tallow Wet or dry rendering
Soybean Direct solvent extraction

Refining

12
During the refining process a number of undesirable compounds are removed. These include
undesirable flavors, colors, free fatty acids, waxes, sulfur-containing compounds and phenols.
There are 2 forms of refining: chemical and physical.

The refining process generally follows 5 steps, which are as follows.

(1) Removal of lecithin: This step is critical for soybean, canola and rapeseed oils. The
phospholipids in the crude oil/water interface are enriched by adding 2–3% water to the crude
oil. The resulting emulsion is heated to 80 °C and then separated or clarified by centrifugation.
The crude lecithin is isolated from the aqueous phase and is recovered as crude vegetable lecithin
after evaporating the water in a vacuum. Water degumming is also used to remove lecithin,
which can be sold as a by-product.
(2) Degumming: This is the process for removing phospholipids (gums), which cannot easily be
hydrated in step 1. Phosphoric acid (0.1% of oil weight) or caustic soda (sodium hydroxide) is
added to the oil to disperse the remaining protein and carbohydrate. The oil is then clarified with
the addition of a filtering aid and subsequent filtering. Residual phospholipids are then removed
by this processing step, usually by centrifugation.
(3) De-acidification/neutralization: This is the process for removing free fatty acids from the
oils. The most frequently used method is the removal of free fatty acids by the addition of 15%
sodium hydroxide (alkaline re-fining). However, the 15% sodium hydroxide is not a fixed
quantity. The amount used will depend on the free fatty acid content of the raw oil. The oil is
heated to 70 °C or lower. The soaps precipitate and are then separated by centrifugation. The
neutralized oil is then washed with more hot water to remove any remaining soaps. The
remaining oil will contain 0.05% free fatty acids. Many modern processes will complete step 2
(degumming) and step 3 (de-acidification/neutralization) together. The residual soap after caustic
refining is neutralized with citric acid simultaneously with earth bleaching. Bleaching is known
in industry as ‗adsorptive cleaning‘ as it removes hydroperoxides, traces metals and residual
gums as well as pigments. This is a very important step, and is a critical step in oil refining.
(4) Bleaching: Bleaching eliminates the strong yellow, reddish pigment, which is considered
undesirable in the oil. The fat or oil is heated to approximately 100 °C and then stirred for 30
min in the presence of bleaching earths containing complex silicates in a vacuum at 90 °C in
order to remove the plant pigments and auto-oxidation products. For difficult oils, activated
carbon can also be used. Silicate is added at 0.5–2% of the weight of the fat or oil and is often
13
used together with 0.1–0.4% activated charcoal. The bleached oil is re-moved from the adsorbent
by filtration.
(5) Deodorization: This takes place under high vacuum (3–5 mm Hg) with oxygen free steam. It
is vitally important that the steam is oxygen free for the formation of bland and stable products.
The oil is heated under vacuum to 200–260 °C and steam is injected into the oil. Although the
main purpose of deodorization is to remove the unwanted odors, it also removes residual free
fatty acids, partial glycerides and pigment de-composition products. The process usually takes 20
min to a maximum of 6 h depending on content of the volatile compounds, the type of fat or oil
and the process being used. The process today usually takes approximately 1 h.

Manipulation of Physiochemical Properties of Oils and Fats

Three processes are used to manipulate the physio-chemical properties of food lipids:
hydrogenation, inter-esterification and fractionation.

Hydrogenation
This is basically the addition of hydrogen to a fat in the presence of a catalyst in order to obtain
different degrees of hardness. Hydrogenation is used to reduce the level of unsaturation in oils
and thereby increase the oil‘s solid fat content as well as increase stability. There are 2 processes,
which occur during hydrogenation. The first is saturation, where a molecule of hydrogen is
added directly across a double bond to give a saturated single bond. This process does not
generate transfatty acids. The second process (isomerization) does generate transfatty acids
through the cisbond isomerizing to give a transbond.

Hydrogenation is particularly useful where it is important to maximize the use of oil. Processing
conditions can be modified to create a range of fats and oils with different characteristics, such as
melting points. One such example is that of soybean oil, where relatively unstable linolenic acid
(C18:3) is converted to more stable fatty acids.
Hydrogenation has been implicated in the formation of trans-fatty acids that have been linked to
coronary heart disease. The principle advantage of inter-esterification over hydrogenation is from
a nutritional perspective.
Notably, no trans-fats are formed during inter-esterification. The formation of trans-fatty acids
during hydrogenation has compelled consumers, health authorities and manufacturers to

14
reconsider the process as trans-fatty ac-ids are considered a health risk. For an increased cost to
overall production, the formation of trans-fatty acids can be controlled and, to a certain extent,
reduced by the use of new catalysts. Another solution is to completely hydrogenate the oil and
thereafter interesterify the fully hardened oil with liquid oil.

Interesterification
Interesterification involves a re-arrangement or randomization of acyl residues in triacylglycerols
with the fats and oils taking on new properties. ‗Tailored fats‘ (fats with specific properties) are
easily obtained during this phase, as the raw materials and processing conditions can be
controlled or manipulated to produce a fat that has specific desired characteristics.
Interesterification has become important for the processing of hardened oil as it minimizes the
content of transfatty acids in the blend. Interesterification not only minimizes transfatty acid
production but can also pro-duce no transfatty acids in the end product. Lipases have been
developed to retain their activity up to a temperature of 80 °C. However, the increased
temperature may result in higher free fatty acid and diacylglycerol content, which can alter the
end product and may require subsequent refining. The cost of this method of interesterification is
high and therefore is currently predominately used for high-value fats and oils.

Fractionation
Fat fractionation involves the separation of fat into different fractions depending on the melting
point, molecular structure, size and solubility in different solvents. The simplest method used for
fractionation is by con-trolled cooling. The melted fat is slowly cooled until the high melting
point triacylglycerols selectively crystallize. The separated crystals are then removed by
filtration.

Machinery in oil industries

Pressing machines
Many different mechanical devices have been used for pressing. The Romans developed a screw
press, described by Pliny, for the production of olive oil. Centuries ago, the Chinese employed
the same series of operations followed in modern pressing mills namely, bruising or grinding the
seeds in stone mills, heating the meal in open pans, and then pressing out the oil in a wedge
press. The Dutch, or stamper, press invented in the 17th century was used almost exclusively in

15
Europe for pressing oilseeds until the early part of the 19th century, when the hydraulic press was
developed. The yield of oil from the hydraulic press was considerably higher than that from
earlier processing methods because of the much higher applied pressures. In open presses, the
ground seed material was confined in cloths of human hair or, less commonly, camel hair.
Pressures on the cake varied from approximately 70 to 140 kilograms per square centimeter
(1,000 to 2,000 pounds per square inch), and in the closed-type press, in which the oil-containing
material was confined in a strong perforated steel cage during the pressing operation, pressures
of approximately 400 kilograms per square centimeter or more were attained. Under ideal
conditions the oil content of the hydraulic-press cake can be reduced to about 3 percent, but in
practical operation a 5 percent level is average. The modern screw press replaced many of the
hydraulic presses because it is a continuous process, has greater capacity, requires less labor, and
will generally remove more oil. As ground seed is fed continuously into the mechanical press, a
worm screw increases the pressure progressively as the material moves through a slotted barrel.
Pressures from 700 to 2,100 kilograms per square centimeter are attained, and the oil is squeezed
out through the slots, leaving a cake containing 3 - 3.5% oil under optimum processing and 4 to 5
percent oil under average conditions.

Solvent extraction
Cakes obtained by pressing operations still retain 3 to 15 percent of residual oil. When the value
of the oil is considerably greater as oil than as a part of the meal, it is desirable to obtain more
complete extraction with solvents. Modern commercial methods of solvent extraction use
volatile purified hydrocarbons, especially the various grades of petroleum benzene (commonly
known as petroleum ether, commercial hexane, or heptane). In large-scale operations, solvent
extraction is a more economical means of recovering oil than is mechanical pressing. In the
United States and increasingly in Europe, there are many instances of simple petroleum benzin
extraction of seeds, mainly soybeans. For seeds or nuts containing higher oil content than
soybeans it became customary to press the material in screw presses to remove a large proportion
of the oil before extraction. Since this prepressing also ruptures the cellular structures of oil-
bearing materials, most of the residual oil is easily removed with solvents.
 A typical extraction system consists of:
(1) Cleaning to remove tramp iron, dirt, foreign weed seeds, and stones,

16
 (2) Removing hulls or cortex in cracking, aspirating, or screening operations,
(3) Cracking or rough grinding the kernels, meats, or prepressed cake,
(4) Steaming (tempering or cooking) of the meats,
(5) Flaking the small pieces between smooth flaking rolls,
(6) Extracting the oil with solvent,
(7) Separating the meal, or marc, from the oil-solvent solution, called miscella, and
(8) Removing the solvent from both the miscella and the marc.

The marc may be toasted or pelletized, or both, for use in animal feeds. Most extracted meals
contain less than 1 percent of residual oil. The amount varies depending on the amount of
prepressing, the type of material being extracted, and the efficiency of the extracting system.

Extractors
Solvent extraction was first practiced in Europe, using batch extractors for the recovery of
additional oil from the residues obtained from mechanical pressing. The greater efficiency of
solvent extraction encouraged direct application to oilseeds, and the batch extractor gradually
gave way to continuous units in which fresh flakes are added continuously and subjected to a
counter flow of solvent. One of the earliest continuous extractors, and a type still considered to
be one of the best, was the Bollman or Hansa-Mühle unit from Germany, in which solvent
percolates through oilseed flakes contained in perforated baskets moving on an endless chain.
After the extraction cycle is complete, the baskets of extracted flakes are dumped automatically
and then refilled with fresh flakes to initiate another cycle. Many extractor designs have been
proposed, but only a few have found wide acceptance. In the DeSmet extractor, popular in
Europe and in a number of developing countries, a bed of flakes on an endless horizontal
traveling belt is extracted by solvent percolation. The Blaw-Knox Rotocell has become the most
popular extractor in the huge American soybean industry. The flakes are conveyed into wedge-
shaped segments of a large cylindrical vessel. Solvent percolating through the cells falls into the
bottom of the extractor housing, where it is picked up by a series of pumps and re-circulated
countercurrent to the flakes.

Processing of extracted oil

17
The extent of processing applied to fats depends on their source, quality, and ultimate use. Many
fats are used for edible purposes after only a single processing step i.e., clarification by settling
or filtering. Most cold-pressed oils (for example, cold-pressed olive, peanut, and some coconut
and sunflower oils) can be used in food products without further processing. Tremendous
quantities of butter and lard are used without special treatment after churning or rendering. The
growing demand for bland-tasting and stable salad oils and shortening, however, has led to
extensive processing techniques.

Refining
The non-glyceride components contribute practically all the color and flavor to fats. In addition,
such materials as the free fatty acids, waxes, color bodies, mucilaginous materials,
phospholipids, carotenoids, and gossypol (a yellow pigment found only in cottonseed oil)
contribute other undesirable properties in fats used for edible and, to some extent, industrial
purposes.

Alkali refining
Many of these can be removed by treating fats at 40 to 85 °C (104 to 185 °F) with an aqueous
solution of caustic soda (sodium hydroxide) or soda ash (sodium carbonate). The refining may be
done in a tank (in which case it is called batch or tank refining) or in a continuous system. In
batch refining, the aqueous emulsion of soaps formed from free fatty acids, along with other
impurities (soap stock), settles to the bottom and is drawn off. In the continuous system the
emulsion is separated with centrifuges. After the fat has been refined, it is usually washed with
water to remove traces of alkali and soap stock. Oils that have been refined with soda ash or
ammonia generally require a light re-refining with caustic soda to improve color. After water
washing, the oil may be dried by heating in a vacuum or by filtering through a dry filter-aid
material. The refined oil may be used for industrial purposes or may be processed further to
edible oils. Usually, the refined oils are neutral (i.e., neither acidic nor alkaline), free of material
that separates on heating (break material), lighter in color, less viscous, and more susceptible to
rancidity.

Water refining

18
Water refining, usually called degumming, and consists of treating the natural oil with a small
amount of water, followed by centrifugal separation. The process is applied to many oils that
contain phospholipids in significant amounts. Since the separated phospholipids are rather waxy
or gummy solids, the term degumming was quite naturally applied to the separation. The
separated phospholipid emulsion layer from oils such as corn (maize) and soybean oils may be
dried (commercially, these products are called lecithin) and used as emulsifiers in such products
as margarine, chocolate products, and emulsion paints. The degumming of crude soybean oil,
which has an average phospholipid content of 1.8 percent, provides the primary source of
commercial lecithin. To obtain products of lighter color, hydrogen peroxide may be added as a
bleaching agent during the drying of lecithin. The degummed oil may be used directly in
industrial applications, such as in paints or alkyd resins, or refined with alkalis for ultimate
edible consumption.

Bleaching
If further color removal is desired, the fat may be treated with various bleaching agents. Heated
oils are treated with fuller‘s earth (a natural earthy material that will decolorize oils), activated
carbon, or activated clays. Many impurities, including chlorophyll and carotenoid pigments, are
adsorbed onto such agents and removed by filtration. Bleaching often reduces the resistance of
oils to rancidity, because some natural antioxidants are removed together with impurities. When
many oils are heated to more than 175 °C (347 °F), a phenomenon known as heat bleaching
takes place. Apparently the heat decomposes some pigments, such as the carotenoids, and
converts them to colourless materials.

Destearinating or winterizing
It is often desirable to remove the traces of waxes (e.g., cuticle wax from seed coats) and the
higher-melting glycerides from fats. Waxes can generally be removed by rapid chilling and
filtering. Separation of high-melting glycerides, or stearine, usually requires very slow cooling in
order to form crystals that are large enough to be removed by filtration or centrifuging. Thus
linseed oil may be winterized to remove traces of waxes that otherwise interfere with its use in
paints and varnishes. Stearine may be removed from fish oils in order to separate the solid
glycerides that would detract from its use in paints and alkyd resins. At the same time, fish
stearine is more suitable than whole oil for edible purposes. Cottonseed and peanut oils may be

19
destearinated to produce salad oils that remain liquid at low temperatures. Tallows and other
animal fats may be destearinated for simultaneous production of hard fats (high in stearic acid
content for special uses such as in making candles) and of liquid oil called oleo oil.

BUTTER FAT
Butterfat also called milk fat, natural occurring fat constituent of cows‘ milk and the chief
component of butter. Clear butterfat rises to the top of melted butter and may be poured off,
leaving the albuminous curd and water that favor the growth of organisms promoting rancidity;
thus, anhydrous butterfat does not become rancid as readily as butter and can be stored
unrefrigerated for several months. Butterfat is used in cooking and as a component in special
dishes.

Chemically, butterfat consists essentially of a mixture of triglycerides, particularly those derived

from fatty acids, such as palmitic, oleic, myristic, and stearic acids. The fatty acid composition of
butterfat varies according to the producing animal‘s diet.

Homogenization is a process of reducing a substance, such as the fat globules in milk, to

extremely small particles and distributing it uniformly throughout a fluid, such as milk. When
milk is properly homogenized, the cream will not rise to the top. The process involves forcing
the milk through small openings under high pressure, thus breaking up the fat globules.

Cream and other food products, such as peanut butter, may be homogenized to produce a stable
emulsion one in which fats or oils will not separate from other elements. A similar process is
used in the manufacture of some cosmetics and pharmaceutical products.

Homogenizers are heavy-duty high-pressure pumps equipped with a special valve at the
discharge end. In milk production, homogenizers are designed to break up fat globules from their
normal size of up to 18 micrometers to less than 2 micrometers in diameter (a micrometer is one-

20
millionth of a meter). Hot milk (with the fat in liquid state) is pumped through the valve under
high pressure, resulting in a uniform and stable distribution of fat throughout the milk. The
benefits of homogenization for milk include a whiter appearance, richer flavor, more uniform
viscosity, better ―whitening‖ in coffee, and softer curd tension (making the milk more digestible
for humans).

Homogenization is also essential for providing improved body and texture in ice cream as well
as numerous other products, such as half-and-half, cream cheese, and evaporated milk.

Cocoa butter is an important component of eating chocolate. Although the chocolate liquor used
in manufacturing eating chocolate already contains cocoa butter, an additional amount is
required to produce a molded product that remains firm until dissolved in the mouth. The amount
of fat obtained from hydraulic pressing of chocolate liquor in cocoa manufacture has become
insufficient for the demands of chocolate production, and whole cocoa beans or nibs may be
processed mainly for their cocoa butter content.

Because of the high cost of cocoa butter, substitutes have been developed, including a type
suitable for warm weather because of its higher melting point; such fats, which many countries
prohibit in products sold as pure chocolate, impart waxy texture and taste similar to that of cocoa
butter.
Uses of Processed Fats and Oils: In the Home and Processed Food Industry
Oil is used for cooking in its natural, unprocessed form or after processing, depending on the
customs and beliefs of the consumers. The most important feature of margarine for the consumer
is the spread ability, which goes hand in hand with oiliness and melting properties.

The properties of fat that make it an important component in foods include the following:

 It forms emulsions with water and air, air may be trapped as an emulsion in fat, as
observed in whipped cream;
 It acts as a lubricant in foods;
 It acts as a shortening, interacts with both protein and starch structures to minimize the
elongation of the protein structure;
 It contributes to both flavor and aroma of foods;
 Fats impart mouth-feel and facilitates ease of swallowing of foods;
 Fats and oils are excellent frying media.

21