Production starts here – from the silo warehouses, from where the raw materials are fed to the buffer silo for production.
The sunflower seeds are fed to the husking machines to create favorable conditions for extracting the oil. The material, thus prepared, is fed to the grinding mill, which gently presses the seeds, after which the grist goes to the press conditioners. Here moisture and thermal processing of specific parameters takes place. The expeller is fed to the press warmed to about from 105° to 110°, and with moisture of about 3-3.5 %. These are technological parameters for obtaining oil. Then we move on to the sedimentation tank, where the coarse ingredients fallen from the pressing settle and go back to the cycle for processing. After the coarse sediments have been removed, the next phase follows – fine filtering. The machines in this production process are German and have high output. “OLIMEX”Ltd. can process 150 tons of sunflowers seeds per 24 hours.
The entire process is controlled and monitored by a control desk. In case of a disturbance, the operator responds depending on the situation.
After the sedimentation tank, fine filtering in an amafilter follows. The oil thus obtained is raw, non-refined. Part of this oil is refined at “OLIMEX” Ltd., and the rest is sold to other manufacturers for processing and production of biodiesel and butter oil.
Now we obtained the refined oil for nutrition purposes. The oil is processed using chemical ingredients – separation of the phosphatides and neutralization. The processes take place in separators - high-revolution centrifuges, where the mixing chemical reaction and purification are done. The process is completed by flushing and separation of soaps. Here, in this container, the oil is prepared for neutralization. In this first separator it is treated by phosphoric acid and sodium hydroxide. The oil passes to the next separator for flushing, there all soaps which are an ingredient after the treatment are separated. After the flushing, the next stages of refining follow, and they are: decolourization and removal of smells. The output of this sector is high, it can process about 35 tons per 24 hours. The decolourization of the oil by bleaching flour and the subsequent filtering in amafilters take place in a system of containers and mixers. Thus the extraordinary color of the oil of the VIDA brand manufactured by “OLIMEX” Ltd. is obtained. After the decolourization, the oil is fed to a reactor for the removal of smells. The process takes place at a high vacuum and high temperatures; the product thus purified is ready for the market, having to pass through a cooler, where the raw material reaches 15-16 degrees centigrade and is subjected to final filtering.
The final product of extrusion the sunflower seed – oil cake (expeller) contains about 10% vegetable oil. It goes for further processing – extraction with hexane, in which the following products appear: sunflower oil and groats, produced by extraction. Sunflower groats is a supplement, used by feed manufacturers.