DESIGNING AND SIMULATION OF AN ENHANCED SCREW-TYPE PRESS FOR VEGETABLE OIL PRODUCTION

Abstract

Problem statement. The production of oil crops and products of their processing has significantly increased in recent decades. Vegetable oils are mainly produced by pressing oilcontaining raw materials using screw-type presses. During the press operation, there is a need to adapt its working regimes to the seeds of individual crops while ensuring the possibility of adjusting certain operation parameters that are set technologically. Purpose. The main purpose of the present research consists in analyzing the design peculiarities of the enhanced screw-type press for extracting oil from different oil crops and oil-containing raw materials. In addition, there is set a goal of analyzing the screw for stresses and strains. Methodology. The finite-element method integrated into the SolidWorks software is used for analyzing the stress-strain state of the pressing screw at the hardest loading conditions. Results. The obtained results are presented in the form of the stresses and strain distribution along the screw shaft and flights. The corresponding 3D and 2D stress-strain diagrams are plotted and thoroughly analyzed. Originality. The zones of the screw overloading are defined and the possibilities of providing the screw reliability and durability are considered. Practical value. The proposed design of the screw-type press can be implemented in practice for performing pressing operations while extracting oil from different oil crops and oil-containing raw materials. The results of testing the screw stress-strain state can be used for predicting the screw reliability and durability at the stage of its designing. Scopes of further investigations. Further investigations on the topic of the present research can be focused on deriving the mathematical model describing the force and pressure conditions applied to the screw shaft and flights