Sheanut Solvent Extraction Plant

GOYUM GROUP INDIA is pioneer in the field of Manufacturing & Exporting Sheanut Solvent Extraction plant with our manufacturing facilities in Ludhiana ( Punjab ), India. We provide a complete customized package on the Client’s requirements ranging starts from 50 TPD (Tons per day).

The nut of the African shea tree (Vitellaria paradoxa). The English word “shea” comes from s’í, the tree’s name in Bambara. It is known by many local names, such as kpakahili in the Dagbani language, taama in the Wali language, kuto in Twi, kaɗe or kaɗanya in Hausa, òkwùmá in the Igbo language, òrí in the Yoruba language, karité in the Wolof language of Senegal, and ori in some parts of West Africa and many others. However altogether known to the world as Shea Nut.

The shea nut tree grows naturally in the wild and dry savannah belt of West Africa from Senegal in the west to Sudan in the east, and onto the foothills of the Ethiopian highlands. It grows in 21 countries across the African continent, namely Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Ethiopia, Eritrea, Ghana, Guinea Bissau, Ivory Coast, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, South Sudan, Sudan, Togo, Uganda, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Kenya and Guinea.

The Oil / Butter extracted from Shea Nut has wide applications and indicated in the records of history.

The Extraction of Shea Oil / Butter started during the 14th century as per historical records from Africa and started exporting to Great Britan since 1846.

Shea Butter Extraction

The Shea butter extracted by several methods from traditional, commercial to modern scientific methods. Out of all there are two best methods of extraction internationally used and widely accepted with commercial feasibility.

Solvent Extraction of Shea Butter / Shea Oil from Shea nuts:

The shea nuts are dried upto 7% to 8% Moisture and used for extraction process

Commercial Specifications of Shea Nuts:

Moisture	7%
Impurities	2%
Oil Content	45%

Shea Nut Cleaning

The Shea nut received from harvest / collection points / traders are cleaned with vibratory cleaners or rotary drum cleaners to remove impurities like dust, stems, leaves and stones.

Magnetic Separation

The cleaned sheanuts passed through either rotary drum magnet of stationary permanent magnet to remove all iron contamination and iron particles.

Cracking

The normal size of shea nuts are from 20 mm to 25 mm with a dia of 12mm to 20mm. These nuts after cleaning passed through the crackers consisting of chilled cast iron rolls. For Good preparation and extraction the nuts should be controlled cracking from 4 to 8 pieces.

Cooking / Conditioning

The cracked nuts are fed to the cooker conditioner where the seeds are tempered by giving temperature through jacketed steam and also little quantity of live steam.

The Shea oil under room temperature solidifies and called as shea butter. To drain out the butter good cooking at elevated temperature is very important factor. Normal cooker conditioners will not work for shea. Specially designed cooker/conditioner will be used and conditioned at a temperature of 90°C to 105°C based on quality of seed.

First Method : Pre Press

This method will help to process higher capacity of nuts.

The cracked and conditioned Shea Nut pieces fed into the screw press where almost 30%% of the Oil will be drained out leaving 15% to 20% Oil in the cake. This cake will be discharged at temperature of 90°C to 100°C.

Second Method: Full Press

The cracked and conditioned Shea nut pieces fed into the screw press where almost 38% of the Oil will be drained out leaving 7% to 8% Oil in the cake. This cake will be discharged at temperature of 90°C to 100°C .

Cake Breaking

The oil expelled cake will be send to solvent extraction plant. At times the size of the cake will be bigger occupying more space for transportation and also for extraction. To enhance better results and prevent voids in the plant the cake will be breaker into 2 to 3 inches size pieces. A pair rolls with breaking knifes or rods fitted on the rolls rotating at specific RPM will be used to break the cake.

The broken pieces will be transferred to solvent extraction plant for further processing called extraction.

Cooling

The Shea nut expelled cake is necessary to cool to 55°C as the solvent extraction plant could not take cake above 55°C.

This cooled cake transferred to solvent extraction plant.

Specifications of Pre Pressed Shea Cake:

Moisture	7-8%
Oil Content	15-20%

Specifications of Full Pressed Shea Cake:

Moisture	7-8%
Oil Content	7-8%

Solvent Extraction

The Shea nut cake Cake solvent extracted either pre Pressed cake or full pressed cake. The Pre pressed cake / fully pressed cake from preparatory section is carried by Redler Conveyor and fed to Extractor Either through rotary valve or Plug O Seal to extractor feed hopper incorporated with high and low level arrangement to ensure proper level of material filled in the Hope and seal for the system. The material through the intake hopper moves on the endless band conveyor chain of moving deep bed extractor and the Hexane is sprayed counter currently over the moving bed material. The solvent percolates n penetrates through the bed and dissolves oil with it. The solvent oil mixture is called as Miscella. Miscella from last hoper will be transferred to miscella holding tank through miscella filter or hydro cyclones fixed above Extractor. The de oiled seed material with solvent is discharged from extractor discharge hopper and is transferred to desolventisor toaster through leak proof sealed solvent tight conveyor.

Meal Conditioning and Bagging

The Shea de oiled meal obtained from the DT discharged at 110°C will be cooled to 10°C above the ambient temperature. This is the final product which called de oiled Shea cake. This will be bagged in 50 to 75 kg through an automatic bagging machine. This will be used as feed ingredient for poultry and animal feed. However in most of the cased it is used as fuel for boiler to generate steam.

Specifications of De Oiled Shea Cake:

Moisture	11 – 12%
Oil Content	1 – 1.5%

Specifications of Solvent Extracted Shea Butter:

MIV	0.2%
Filterable impurities	0.2%
Peroxide Value mEq02/Kg	10
Phosphatides	400-600 PPM

(FFA and Un sap matter will depend on the quality of Shea nuts and storage condition of shea nuts.)

The Shea butter has wide applications in our daily life.

Shea Nut Solvent Extraction Plant Process

• Meal Desolventization
• Miscella Distillation System
• Condensation and Solvent Recovery
• Recuperation (Absorption and Desorption) Unit

Please Click Here to know the above process in details about Sheanut Solvent Extraction Plant to extract Shea Nut Oil to make Shea butter.