FAQs
S. No.
TROUBLE
CAUSES
SOLUTION
1.
Material Does Not Move Forward
Excess moisture in the cooked meal Too much Oil in the Meal
Reduce Moisture Content in the meal Improper spaces used in the cage bar of chambers
2.
High Percentage of Oil in Cake
Screw press not getting sufficient feed Spaces between cage bars not sufficient Wrong setting of worm assembly Worn out worm assembly
Adjusting feed Put proper spacer in between cage bars Fit proper setting of worm Assembly Replace worn out worm Assembly
3.
Heavy Discharge of Foots
Excess moisture in the Meal More inter spaces in the cage bars Low Fibre content in the Meal
Add only sufficient moisture Reduce spaces between cage bars Increase fibre content
4.
Heavy oil flow near discharge ends
Expeller not getting sufficient feed
Adjusting the feed
5.
Low yield of Oil
Improper cooking Excess moisture in the seed Heavy discharge of foots through cage bars Wrong setting of Worm assembly Worn out worm assembly
cook properly by adjusting moisture content and temerature Reduce moisture Control the heavy discharge by adjusting moisture and spacer sizes Fit proper setting of Worm assembly Replace worn out worm assembly
6.
Oil drips from discharge end
Improper fitting of worm assembly Blocked spaces between cage bars Spacers between cage bars not proper
Fit worm assembly appropriately Removing blackages by opening the chambers Fit proper spacers between cage bars
7.
Heavy wear & tear of Worm assembly, cage bars, discharge ring, cone point
Presence of sand,stones or abbrasive materials in the meal Presence of iron pieces Cooked meal enter the screw press is dry
Clean the seeds or nuts before the enter the screw press Use magnetic Separator Adjust the moisture content
8.
Improper cake
Improper cooking Cooked material contains excess moisture Blockage of interspaces in cage bars Too dry feed material
Do proper cooking Reduce moisture content Remove blockages by opening the chamber Add sufficient material
9.
Screw Press Giving abnormal sound
Feed material is dry Presence of Foriegn particles Improper fitting from where sound is created
Increase moisture content Remove blockages by opening the chamber Check and correct the fitting properly
10.
Main shaft stuck in running machine
Cooked material is too dry
Adjust the moisture content in the kettle for cooking
11.
Cake contains more oil contents
Expeller is not getting sufficient feed. Improper cooking. Increased inter spaces between the bars Insufficient fibrous matter or binder in the meal Very dry seed. Excess moisture in the seed. Discharge of heavy foots. Design of the expeller. Wrong setting of worms. Immature seed. Worms are worn out.
12.
Heavy wear and tear of the worms ,Knife bars and machine
Presence of sand, mud, stones in the feed material. Presence of iron or metallic pieces. Too dry seed is fed. Running the machine in choked condition.
13.
Low yield of oil
Present of impurities in the feed material. Improper cooking. Excess of moisture in the seed. Heavy discharge of foots through cage. Presence of damaged seed in the feed material. Design of the expeller. Wrong setting of worms. Immature seed. Worms are worn out.
14.
Heavy discharge of foots
Excess moisture in the cooked meal. More inter spaces in cage bars. Breakage of cage bars. Low fibrous material.
15.
Improper cake
Improper cooking. Cooked material contains excess moisture. Blockage of inter spaces in cage bars. Too dry feed material.
16.
Material refuses to slide
Cooked material is too dry Choking of cage Improper spacers used in the cage.
17.
Oil is not clear
Improper cooking Excess moisture in cooked meal. Low cooking temperature Immature seed
18.
No oil coming out of the expeller
Feed material is very soft and smooth. Feed material is deficient in fibrous material. Material is over cooked.
19.
Expeller giving groaning sound /Violent vibrations in the machine/Machine throwing the belts off/Blowing the fuses of driving motor
Feed material is too dry Presence of metallic piece in the cage Choking of cage and pressing worms
20.
Oil drips from Discharge end.
The heaviest flow of oil from the cage is normally at the feed section, If this does not happens and the oil flows from further along the cage
at the centre or discharge end, it is a indication that the expeller is not getting sufficient feed. In an expeller, the pressure is generated
according to the volume of material fed to it. When the cage is not running full of meal, much pressure is lost, and when the pressure is lost,
good extraction will not take place and cake will contain more percentage of oil. The fed from the cooker should be regulated, so that the feed hoper
is always full. When the expeller is properly working, good amount of oil also flows through the intermediate chamber, but very little oil trickles
out from the last chamber.
21.
Abnormal Discharge of foots.
In expellers when properly prepared and cooked meal is pressed a small percentage of oily meal known as foots is discharged along the cage.
These foots are normally mixed with the meal in the kettle and thus disposed off in the process. If it is allowed to accumulate, they result in the
development of acidity. Sometimes there is an abnormal discharge of foots from the cage. It means that the pressure on the meal is being lost and the
discharged cake will be containing more oil content. This may be due to improper cooking of the meal or increased interspaces between the cage bars.
Low fibrous material in the meal is also a frequent cause of an abnormal discharge of ‘foots’. The cause of such abnormal discharge of foots, should
be immediately removed, otherwise it will give heavy losses to the efficient working of the mill.
22.
Expeller refuses to Feed.
Position no.1 If after running the expeller for sometime in good order, and a good cake has been made, the expeller then refuses to take sufficient
feed to give desire pressure and a good tough cake, the indication is that the oil is collecting in the press cage instead of quickly
flowing out through the bars. This generally occurs with more oily seeds and irregular feeding. When sudden rush of oil content cannot
escape quickly. This oil mixes with the incoming meal, forms a spongy mass, which the worms cannot grip and is, therefore, allowed to
churn in the cage as an oily paste. If this happens the door of the feed chamber should be opened and oily mass is allowed to run out.
The feed should be stopped and a few pieces of dry broken cake should be run, which will clear the whole cage. The feed from the cooker
should then be opened and working resumed. If this defect becomes persistent, the chamber should be opened and the spaces between the
cage bars of the feed section should be slightly enlarged by inserting suitable spacers between them.
Position No.2 The expeller refuses to take meal, after it has been stopped for some time. This indicates that a block of hardened meal has been formed and is adhering to the worms and the cage lining. This generally happens when the meal is left in the cage before closing, which bakes hard in the heat of the press cage. When such an obstruction occurs, it is , advisable not to attempt to force the meal, as it may result in damages. In such case, the chamber should be opened and the hard meal removed.
Position No.2 The expeller refuses to take meal, after it has been stopped for some time. This indicates that a block of hardened meal has been formed and is adhering to the worms and the cage lining. This generally happens when the meal is left in the cage before closing, which bakes hard in the heat of the press cage. When such an obstruction occurs, it is , advisable not to attempt to force the meal, as it may result in damages. In such case, the chamber should be opened and the hard meal removed.
23.
Material Entering pressure cone.
Sometimes oil creeps in between the cone bore and the sleeves and retards the ready movement of the cone in or out. This oil becomes hard in
between the cone and sleeve, due to presence of uncoagulated albuminoids in the oil which is released by improperly cooked meal. This happens because
he cone remains hot due to friction and the albumen gets baked into an extremely hard thin cake resembling a thin strip of ‘Bakelit’. It is this
deposit which retards the free movements of the cone in or out. To avoid such problems, the meal is properly cooked so that all albuminoids are
coagulated and left in the cake , The cone should also be taken out at least once in 24 hours When this is done, The sleeve on which it slides should
be thickly greased, which will prevent albumen penetration too far.
24.
Effect On Worms
The Pressing worms of an expeller usually get the heaviest wear & tear, which generally starts from the last worm i.e.worm which is nearer to
the cone. If this worm is changed from time to time. The wear and tear on other worms is generally minimised. If worm out worms are allowed to
continue, they create space between the bars and top rim of the worm, this prevents the material being forced forward and therefore keep churning in
the feed section. This results low capacity and yield of the machine. Sometime oil drips continuously fro the discharge end along the cake. This
indicates that worms and collars are not properly fitted in the shaft and oil finds passage in between them and flows to the entire length of the
shaft. This difficulty can be removed by putting thick brown paper rings in between the worms and collars etc.