Although it is not used for soybean, the mechanical press process is applied today for seeds with high oil content like sunflower, rapeseed etc., in general for pre-pressed purpose; the intermediate residual oil content in press cake is about 20%.
How is soybean oil made?
Shijing, the Book of Odes, contains several poems mentioning soybeans. To produce soybean oil, the soybeans are cracked, adjusted for moisture content, heated to between 60 and 88 °C (140 and 190 °F), rolled into flakes, and solvent-extracted with hexanes. The oil is then refined, blended for different applications, and sometimes hydrogenated.
How is crude oil produced in a soybean crushing plant?
The crude oil is usually water degummed in the crushing plant which generates an additional flow, consisting of gums (or lecithin). Table 1 presents the main quality parameters (optimal contents) of the major products from soybean crushing.
What is soybean oil used for?
Most of the remaining residue (soybean meal) is used as animal feed. In the 2002¨C2003 growing season, 30.6 million tons (MT) of soybean oil were produced worldwide, constituting about half of worldwide edible vegetable oil production, and thirty percent of all fats and oils produced, including animal fats and oils derived from tropical plants.