What is a Cottonseed Oil Refiner and How Does It Work?

QIE

2025-07-07

Product description

Cottonseed oil refiner is the core equipment of the oil processing industry. It focuses on the deep refining of cottonseed oil (degumming, deacidification, decolorization, deodorization), which can significantly improve the oil grade to the national first-class standard. It is widely used in edible oil production, biofuel and chemical fields. With the growth of healthy consumption demand, the global refined vegetable oil market will reach US$185 billion in 2023 (Statista data), of which cottonseed oil accounts for 12% due to its high smoke point and low cost, driving the demand for refining equipment to increase by 6.8% annually (Grand View Research forecast).

Cottonseed oil refining machine is a kind of equipment specially used for deep processing of cottonseed crude oil. Cottonseed crude oil is the original oil extracted from cottonseed, which contains a variety of impurities, such as free fatty acids, phospholipids, pigments, mechanical impurities and some odor substances. These impurities not only affect the appearance, taste and storage stability of cottonseed oil, but also may cause potential harm to human health.

The cottonseed oil refining machine removes these impurities from the cottonseed crude oil through a series of physical and chemical methods, and converts it into refined cottonseed oil that meets the national edible oil standards. It integrates multiple refining process links, can efficiently and accurately complete the refining task, and is an indispensable core equipment in the cottonseed oil production line.

Cottonseed oil refining process

1. Degumming process

The refiner first uses a hydration degumming process to add hot water or phosphoric acid to make the phospholipids in the oil absorb water and swell, and then removes these colloid-soluble impurities through centrifugal separation. This step solves the pain points of cottonseed oil being easy to become turbid and oxidized.

2. Deacidification process

The equipment uses physical or chemical methods to neutralize free fatty acids in the oil. The chemical method neutralizes by adding alkali solution, and the physical method removes by distillation. It effectively solves the problem of cottonseed oil quality affected by high acid value.

3. Decolorization process

By adding adsorbents such as activated white clay, pigments in oil are adsorbed under vacuum conditions. This process significantly improves the problem of cottonseed oil being too dark in color, making it appear an attractive golden yellow.

4. Deodorization process

Under high temperature and high vacuum conditions, the principle of steam distillation is used to remove odorous substances and volatile components in the oil. This completely solves the peculiar odor problem of cottonseed oil and improves the palatability of the product.

If you are looking for cottonseed oil refinery equipment, our professional equipment will be your ideal choice. Feel free to consult QIE GROUP and get customized solutions and the latest quotes.