Refining

De Smet supplied over 200 wet and 250 dry degumming units.

Degumming


Degumming is the first operation in refining. The Impac^® Degumming process consists of a mere hydration of the crude oil. Certain impurities like phospholipids, gums and proteins are soluble in oil in their anhydrous form, but insoluble once they are hydrated. This is how the hydratable phospholipids are removed from the oil. Part of the constituents however remain in the oil, and an acid treatment is needed to remove them.

Water degumming is more generally carried out in the extraction plant rather than in the refinery, lest foots should conglomerate in the crude oil intermediate tanks.

The aqueous phase obtained after degumming separation is recirculated into the meal stream of the toaster. Should lecithin be of significant commercial value, it can be dried separately.




Nano Neutralization^TM

	Based on patented technology developed by CTi and exclusively brought to the oils and fats industry by Desmet Ballestra, the Nano Neutralization process offers enhanced performance for your refining operation: improved oil refining yield, lower operating expenses, reduced environmental impact, excellent oil quality… This revolutionary new oil neutralization process, which can be easily added to existing oil refineries, is commercially proven and will offer you a quick return on investment.	A collaboration with

The Advantages of Nano Neutralization Process

Refined oil yield increase by over 0.2%
Improved conditioning of the oil in the Nano Reactors^® results in optimized separation of the heavy aqueous phase from the light oil phase in the neutralizing centrifuge. Less neutral oil remains in the heavy phase and overall oil yield is increased.

As much as a 50% reduction in silica usage
Silica can be saved via the optimized separation of the heavy phase from the light phase in the neutralizing centrifugal separator due to oil conditioning in the Nano Reactors^®. Less soap remains in the neutralized oil phase, thus reducing the need for silica (or wash water) downstream to remove the residual soap. Less silica (or wash water) also translates directly to less oil loss in the spent silica (or spent wash water). Our customers have experienced as much as a 50% reduction in silica usage!

		Your new or existing refining plant deserves the best! CTi Nano Neutralization is an add-on technology for existing oil refinery neutralization systems which can improve oil yield and save silica (or wash water), phosphoric acid and caustic and can even save on steam, maintenance, repair parts and labor costs. Nano Neutralization is also available for implementation in new refining plants. The process reduces your equipment and installation costs while also providing you the competitive advantages realized with chemical savings mentioned in this document.

90% reduction in phosphoric acid consumption
Nano Reactors^® significantly facilitate the removal of non-hydratable phospholipids. As a consequence, the use of phosphoric acid or citric acid is reduced. With the Nano Neutralization process, phosphoric acid usage can be substantially decreased or totally eliminated.

30% reduction in caustic usage
The significantly lower phosphoric acid consumption consequently allows savings in caustic usage. Caustic addition can be further lowered, due to superior mixing of the caustic water solution and oil inside the Nano Reactors^®, resulting in a perfect stoechiometric need of caustic to convert all FFA into soaps without the need for an excess quantity.

Savings in steam consumption and maintenance
Steam can be saved in refineries that presently heat the oil above centrifugal separation temperature during the acid pretreatment step to enhance the process.
With Nano Neutralization there is no need to heat the oil above centrifugal separation temperature, thus saving steam.

Repair parts and maintenance costs can be saved in refineries that presently use outdated high shear mixers and acid reactor to mix the acid into the oil and provide retention. In these cases, the high shear mixer, pump and tank agitator are taken out of service. The annual maintenance and repair parts costs for this equipment far exceeds that of Nano Neutralization.

Nano Neutralization Process described, soon to be “The Industry Standard”

Crude oil or water degummed oil is pumped from the existing acid pretreatment section through a safety filter, through a totalizing flow transmitter, and into a small surge tank at a desired process flow rate. The oil is transferred from the small surge tank to the inlet of a high pressure pump by gravity drainage. A caustic water solution is injected into the oil between the small surge tank and the inlet of the high pressure pump from the existing caustic dosing system. The amount of caustic water solution is automatically controlled via the PLC by a set-point dosage and the incoming oil flow transmitter data.

Two simple control loops are used to maintain peak performance and protect the efficient and robust pump feeding the oil and caustic water solution directly into the Nano Reactor^®. The first is a variable frequency drive adjusts the speed of the pump motor to maintain the optimal operating pressure, which is critical to the process, to compensate for fluctuations in the flow rate. The second is a level transmitter mounted in the surge tank is used to adjust the control valve’s open position in the recycle line to ensure a constant feed to the pump. These two control loops ensure the Nano Reactor^® provides consistent, efficient, and dependable performance.

The high pressure pump elevates the pressure of the oil plus caustic water stream to the values from 40 to 80 bar (600 to 1200 psig). Once the oil and caustic water solution passes through the Nano Reactors^®, at the discharge, fluid pressure returns to typically 3.4 bar (<50 psig).

Once the oil and caustic water solution has passed through the Nano Reactors^® it proceeds on to a retention tank, and then on to the existing centrifugal separator.

After the centrifugal separator, the neutralized oil stream passes through a totalizing flow transmitter, used to measure the final refined oil yield.

After the flow transmitter the neutralized oil flows on to the silica absorption system (or water wash system) to remove residual soap.

De Smet has supplied over 145 neutralising units.

Neutralisation


This operation consists in neutralising the free fatty acids, using caustic soda. The process transforms the free fatty acids into soaps.

These are no longer soluble in water and can be removed easily by decantation or centrifugal force. The removal of the free fatty acids does not close neutralisation, as the operation also eliminates the phospholipids that are not hydrated at degumming level, and it reduces the amount of metal traces as well as some pigments and minor constituents.





De Smet has supplied over 530 bleaching plants

Bleaching

Bleaching is the process operation which is carried out before deodorisation.

In addition to colouring matters, the bleaching treatment using actived earth will remove residual phosphatides, metals, soaps and oxidation products.

Bleaching in 3 stages
Bleaching is performed in 3 stages :

Initial mixing of oil with bleaching earth under controlled conditions of temperature, acidity and humidity for a specific residence time.

Secondly the oil is heated under vacuum with sparge steam to ensure proper mixing with bleaching earth for a specific residence time.

Finally the mixture is pumped through hermetic leaf filters with stainless steel mesh elements followed by polishing filtration.

Spent cake is dried by steam blowing to remove the oil from the wet cake.



Desmet Ballestra unique SPARBLEACH

The originality of Sparbleach^® is that the adsorption of coloring matters by the bleaching earth is enhanced by means of sparge steam resulting in a significant saving in bleaching earth.

The Sparbleach^® is a two stage vessel. Oil/earth mixure is introduced under vacuum into the top stage where it is heated and continuously agitated by injected sparge steam.

The dispersion of earth at optimum conditions of : vacuum temperature combined with steam agitation of the oil mass ensures ideal conditions to start the adsorption process.

The bottom holding compartment where the decoloration is completed is equipped with an arrangement of partitions ensuring uniform residence time and sparge steam distributors

Main Advantages High, uniform product quality assurance. Reduced bleaching earth consumption in comparison to bleachers using mechanical agitation. No moving parts, i.e. no need to stock replacements for expensive mechanical seals or gearboxes. Heating using steam heated coils means a significant reduction in maintenance. Easy access for routine maintenance and savings in labour costs. Oil recovery from filter cake by steam blowing

Sparbleach^® with prefiltration

De Smet has developped this new technology, which has now been adopted on a large scale by the industry.

This new process is based on the re-use of the spent bleaching earth, without removing it from the bleaching filters. Once the spent bleaching earth is re-used in the filter, it is discharged and evacuated.

The prefiltration requires an additional filter.

Main Advantages - Substantial reduction of bleaching earth consumption - Reduction of oil loss - Reduction of utilities consumptions.

Combiclean

The Combiclean is a further development, which has received a lot of interest of all our customers.
The Combiclean is the combination of a Sparbleach^® with prefiltration together with a silica pretreatment,
followed by a separate active carbon treatment with dedicated filters. This allows the reduction of polluted filter cakes amount.



De Smet supplied over 110 winterising plants.

Winterisation

Winterisation is an operation designed to preserve limpidity and refined oils brightness.

The Wintrend^® process consists in removing from these oils, mainly maize and sunflower, small quantities of solids that cause cloudiness when the oil is kept at ambient or low temperature. These solid substances can be saturated glycerides or waxes. Thanks to the relatively small amount of solids - between a few hundred and 2000 ppm - winterising is a continuous and, therefore, cost-effective process. In order to obtain an oil with good stability, the wax content needs to be reduced to a level of less than 10 ppm. To achieve this, the variables of time, temperature and agitation require special care to produce oil in a closely controlled range.

The process is conducted in four steps:

• the oil is precooled in heat exchangers,
  
  
• filter aid is added and the oil is cooled very slowly,
  
  
• the crystallised oil stays a few hours in a maturator, at final cooling temperature,
  
• the oil is then filtered in horizontal hermetic leaf filters. The oil temperature is often raised just before filtration, to reduce viscosity and hence facilitate filtration.
  
  

WINTREND® Major Advantages One single plant only for dewaxing & winterising Perfect cold stability : at least 72H at 0°C Two-step filter aid dosage : minimal consumption Gradual cooling : reduced filter aid consumption Fully closed process : no oil oxidation

De Smet supplied over 900 deodorising plants.

Deodorising

Final stage in refining process

Deodorising is the final stage in oil refining. Deodorising removes odoriferous material, free fatty acids and other undesired minor components to produce a bland oil with a good shelf life.

State-of-the-art deodorising

Over the latest years, the aim of a state-of-the-art deodorising became:

maximise:
- odour, flavour removal
- free fatty acid removal
- colour reduction (heat bleaching)
- peroxides destruction

minimise:
- losses in essential fatty acids (EPA/DHA)
- creation of transisomerisation (TFA)
- polymerisation
- breakdown vitam. A+D+E

Organoleptic & Nutritional Value - Shelf life

Final customers require a perfect oil with high organoleptic and nutritional values, even one year after production.

Deodorising stages

The different stages in deodorising are :
- Deaeration
- Heating
- Deodorising / steam stripping
- Heat recovery / cooling
- Final cooling
- Polishing filtration

Top quality products require optimal conditions at all stages.

Available deodorising technologies

We supply a Continuous Deodoriser, the Qualistock^® and a Feedstock change Deodoriser, the Multistock^®.

For both systems, we can propose the Sublimax Ice Condensing System.



Continuous Deodorisers

Qualistock^® Deodoriser

Highly demanding processors
The Qualistock^® Deodoriser is a new fully integrated compact deodorising system, including a new steam injection concept, in which deaeration, heat exchanging, heating, deodorising/stripping, cooling and scrubbing all take place in one single vessel.

The Qualistock^® (patented) has been developed for highly demanding processors seeking reliable, consistent and efficient product quality, and is the result of a continuous R&D effort based on the experience of more than 900 deodorising plants.

Very short payback time The Qualistock® represents a major technological breakthrough for the vegetable oil processors as the payback of the investment isextremely short thanks to: Superior Oil Quality Minimal Oil Losses Reduced Steam Reduced Fuel Fits in confined spaces Modular design Reduced building cost Reduced installation cost Limited & Easy Maintenance Easy transport Centralised Supervision

Qualistock^®‘s superior benefits....

1. Superior Oil Quality

Deaeration
The first important step is to correctly deaerate the oil to remove the dissolved oxygen with as positive result the limitation of excessive oxidation and polymerisation.

Contact Area
Deodorisation is a physical process where it is important to optimise the contact area between the steam and the oil.

Remove shorter chain compounds...
The purpose is to effectively remove the shorter chain compounds, such as ketones and aldehydes. These are the source
of off-flavours and smell in the final product.

..and longer chain compounds
It is simultaneously a chemical process where longer chain compounds are thermally cracked by a defined time at deodorising temperature, to be removed during the physical process.
Cooling of the oil takes place under vacuum with sparge steam, by means of heat exchange with the incoming oil. These cooling conditions are necessary to ensure a first class refined oil.

Actual trends
Actually the trend in deodorising is to deodorise at lower temperatures (220-235 °C) and with a deeper vacuum (2mbar) to minimise trans and polymer formation and the loss of valuable minor components like tocopherols.

2. Minimal Oil Losses

Reduced losses
The neutral oil losses have been substantially reduced compared to conventional deodorisers, thanks to the unique integrated concept of the Qualistock^®.

Negligible pressure drop
The pressure drop in a Qualistock^® is negligible, and high vacuum conditions allow deodorising to take place at a lower temperature, which is beneficial for the retention of natural anti-oxidants.

Double steam injection
In the Qualistock^®, steam injection is effected on one hand through special designed gas-lift pumps and on the other hand
through steam injection rings located at the bottom of the tray.

Low velocity gases
In the Qualistock^® the gases loaded with stripped components are moving down in the large central chimney at very low velocity. Furthermore, the Qualistock^® is concieved in such a way that the temperature gradiant of the deodoriser vessel is gradually going down from top to bottom.

3. Reduced Steam & Fuel Consumption

New design gas-lift pumps
The stripping steam is blown into the tray by gas-lift pumps of a new design.
The high capacity pumping action enhances rapid circulation of the oil in the tray, and oil at the bottom of the tray is carried to the surface many times during the process cycle, offering optimum contact area.

Large heat exchange area
Fuel consumption is kept to a minimum thanks to the large heat exchange area of a number of individual coils manufactured from high quality stainless steel pipes of large diameter.

Uniform foam layer
A large surface area between oil and steam is ensured by the intimate contact within the gas-lift pumps, generating a uniform foam layer creating an enormous contact surface.

4. Fits in Confined Spaces


5. Modular Design

All Qualistock^® trays are modular. A taylor-made design can be built up out of standard modules, to suit the customer’s requirements.

Special options
Following special options are available :

Dual-Temperature Deodorising with options:
- Low-High
- High-Low

Dual Condensation

For specific applications we have designed a Low Pressure Drop structured packing (LPDSP).

Variable deodorising trayoil bed (shallow-deep)allowing variableresidence time

6. Reduced Building & Installation Cost

The Qualistock^® is self-supporting and supplied with a skirt.
Pumps can be installed inside the skirt.
The Qualistock^® requires only small platforms, giving access to the manholes and sightglasses, which drastically reduces the building cost.
Usually, even in cold climates, the Qualistocks^® can be installed in the open. Piping is limited due to the integrated vertical concept, which further reduces erection cost and time.

7.Easy Maintenance

No high temperature pumps, neither delicate heat exchangers.
With a reduced peripheral piping, there is less risk of leaks.
Thanks to the low temperature deodorising there is also less build-up of polymers.
Designed to operate 24H/day, 7 days a week, 52 weeks a year with-out shut down.
Cleaning is limited to once every year depending on the quality and type of processed rawmaterials.

8. Easy Transport

The Qualistock^® is available in standard diameters from 1,9 m up to 4,2 m. and is usually supplied in one piece, but the possibility exists to supply in two or three segments depending on the off-loading limitations of the customer.



Feedstock Change Deodorisers

The Multistock^® is a single shell compact column containing several integrated trays or compartments.
In the upper part of the Multistock^® the oil is heated to deodorising temperature and then cooled in the lower part of the Multistock^®

Thermosyphon heat exchange This is accomplished with the thermosyphon heat recovery system in which the hot oil after deodorization is used to generate steam, which is condensed in the top tray to heat the incoming bleached oil.
In the second tray the oil is heated to deodorization temperature with high pressure steam.

In the deodorizing trays the oil remains as a batch in the tray and movement must be induced.
This is done by introducing the stripping steam into the tray in a number of gas-lift pumps.

Optimum contact area

The high capacity pumping action produced results in rapid circulation of the oil in the tray. The oil at the bottom of the tray is moved to the optimum contact area at the surface many times during the process cycle.
A large surface area between oil and steam is ensured by the initimate contact within the gas-lift pumps and also by the
generation of a thin film at the discharge of each pump.

With this steam injection system, a deeper oil layer improves the circulation rate of the pumps.
Therefore, the overall diameter of the Multistock^® may be kept within reasonable limits.
After initial cooling in the thermosyphon system, the deodorized oil may be cooled to discharge temperature in a number of ways with the possibility of obtaining some extra heat recovery:

• Generation of a constant supply of hot water,
  
• Generation of low pressure steam
  
• A second thermosyphon to heat incoming oil
  
• Using water from the cooling tower
  

The Multistock^® is designed for the factory requiring maximum flexibility in processing different feedstocks daily. Product change is totally automated with the possibility of no production loss and minimum interstock contamination.

The Multistock^® vessel mechanical design and process operating data covering normal operation, start-up and shut-down conditions have been submitted to rigorous finite element analysis for possible metal fatigue problems due to the thermal cycles (400.000 cycles over 20 years operation).

The highest stressed areas are strengthened and welding specifications guarantee a long working life.

Multistock® major points Frequent stock changes : up to 40/ day Adaptable batch size : flexibility Proven and calculated reliability Low contamination : product purity Ideal coil design Excellent vapour scrubbing

Ice Condensing Sublimax

The Sublimax^® (patented) is a new generation vertical Ice Condensing technology, optimised specifically for the deodorising process, achieving very low absolute pressures and drastically reducing the running cost of the plant in terms of energy consumption and polluted water flow. Special vacuum production units have been developed to reach lower pressures and operating costs, and at the same time, to reduce emissions by a more efficient condensation of the volatiles. The dry ice condensing system is becoming more and more the standard in new refining plants. In this system, the sparge steam is iced on surface condensers working alternately at extreme low temperatures (around –30°C).

The remaining non-condensables are removed either by mechanical pumps or roots blowers in series with a liquid ring pump or by a vacuum steam ejector system (booster). The dry ice condensation system reduces the motive steam consumption but requires extra electrical energy.

DC systems essentially consist of two or more freeze condensers containing the cooled tubes, a refrigeration plant for the generation of cold refrigerant which is evaporated in the tubes and a vessel with relatively warm water for defrosting and cleaning of the tubes after a period of freezing.

Advantages of the Sublimax®: Economical: lower electricity consumption, less peaks Safety: falling film,lower refrigerant mass Reliable: no blockage of ice, gradual cooling Selfcleaning: efficient removal of fatty matters Space: minimal floor space requirement Top Oil Quality: negligible pressure drop Universal: also suitable for existing deodorisers

The Sublimax^® has been developed for highly demanding processors seeking reliable, consistent and efficient product quality, based on the experience of over 900 deodorising plants and has been acquired by Cargill, Unilever, Karlshamns, Central Soya, etc...