Deodorisation Column Vacuum System

Deodorisation is the final refining step for vegetable oils — sunflower, palm, soya, rapeseed — that removes free fatty acids, off-flavours (aldehydes, ketones) and colour pigments by steam stripping under deep vacuum. Operating at 2–6 Torr absolute at 230–260°C, the deodoriser strips volatile flavour compounds with direct steam, which are then condensed and collected. The vacuum system must handle large quantities of stripped vapours combined with the stripping steam, all at very low pressure.

Primetech 3–4 stage steam ejector systems with inter-condensers are specifically designed for deodoriser service, handling the high specific volume gas loads at the suction stage and providing the deep vacuum required for efficient fatty acid removal. The fatty acid condensate is a valuable by-product used in soap and oleochemical manufacture.

Hydrogenation Plant Vacuum

Edible oil hydrogenation plants use hydrogen at elevated pressure to saturate double bonds, producing hardened fats for margarine and shortening manufacture. The reactor degassing system and hydrogen recovery use steam ejectors to pull dissolved hydrogen from the oil. Single and two-stage ejectors handle the relatively moderate vacuum (100–300 Torr) required for degassing operations, operating continuously without the risk of hydrogen embrittlement that affects mechanical vacuum pump components.