Study of sorption processes for corn oil refining

Abstract

Studies have summarized and analyzed the structure of an aqueous sodium silicate solution, which showed their dual nature. On the one hand, they exhibit the properties of electrolytes, and on the other hand, they contain monomeric alkali metal cations and polymeric silicon-oxygen anions. The use of an aqueous solution of sodium metasilicate with a silicate modulus equal to 1, in which polyanions predominate, is substantiated for the process of chemisorption purification of unrefined corn oil. A comparative analysis of the methods of purification of unrefined and hydrated vegetable oils pretreated in an electromagnetic field with solutions of organic acids and sodium silicate is carried out. Obviously, when purifying unrefined corn oil with an aqueous solution of sodium silicate, there is a complex mechanism of the sorption process with various groups of polar accompanying substances, complicated by chemical interactions. On the basis of planned experimental studies, adequate experimental-statistical models were obtained for calculating the soap content in the resulting corn oil and its yield, depending on the studied process parameters. It was found that in the studied range of temperatures and parameters of an aqueous solution of sodium silicate, corn oil is obtained according to the acid number corresponding to the Russian National Standard for refined corn oil. The optimal parameters of the chemisorption purification process in terms of temperature, concentration and dosage of sodium silicate with a silicate modulus equal to 1 are experimentally substantiated when the Reynolds criterion of the mixer is changed in the studied range from 4000 to 12000, ensuring the production of corn oil corresponding to the accepted quality parameters.