At the end of the process, most of the steam is condensed and collected as wastewater that result in the so-called palm oil mill effluent (POME). High oil content in the condensate is an indicator of over sterilisation. Meanwhile, insufficient sterilisation is indi-cated by a large number of unstripped bunches (USB).
How does a palm oil mill work in Malaysia?
harvesters collect and deliver the loose fruits to the mill for processing as soon as possible to minimise the de-terioration of the oil. The typical processing capacity of a palm oil mill in Malaysia ranges from 10 tonnes to 120 tonnes of FFB per hour.
What is a typical palm oil mill?
Figure 1 shows the block flow diagram of a typical palm oil mill for the production of crude palm oil. The major unit operations include sterilisation, stripping, digestion and press-ing, clarification, drying and storage.
Where is palm oil produced?
Currently, palm oil is primarily produced in Southeast Asia, with Indonesia and Malaysia account for approximately 84% of the worlds production (USDA 2019). According to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the demand for palm oil is anticipated to hit 156 million tonnes by 2050 (Officer 2016).