Bleaching Earth is a solid waste material
generated as a part of the refining process in the
edible oil industry, worldwide.
Bleaching Earth is a solid waste material
generated as a part of the refining process in the
edible oil industry, worldwide.
Bleaching Earth is usually disposed of in landfills or waste dumps. Due to
increasing cost of disposal and being an environmental hazard, it is desirable to
recover oil using a Solvent Extraction process in an efficient and economical
manner, before disposing off Bleaching Earth as per environmental
regulations.
In refining, bleaching earth is used to remove color, metal, phosphatides,
oxidized products and residual gums from the oil; however, in turn, it absorbs
approximately 20-40 % by weight of the Bleaching Earth.
The Oil in Bleaching Earth can be recovered using our patented
technology leaving less than 1% in the Bleaching Earth which meets the
environmental regulations for the disposal of bleaching earth for any
application
The oil recovered immediately after the bleaching process
by extraction with a solvent can be used as feedstock to a
refinery. Otherwise it can be reused as a raw material for
industrial applications to save costs in the processing
industry. As the residual oil has a very high FFA and
Peroxide Value, it can only be used for non-food
applications, as feed stock for conversion to Biodiesel, and
as a lubricant base for bio-lubricants as a feedstock to the
oleo-chemical industry.
In our process, the oil can be recovered from Bleaching Earth using both a flammable as well as
non-flammable solvent, which has been done for the
first time in the world.
The output de-oiled Bleaching Earth is safe
for disposal in land fill. It can also be used as a fuel
in the boilers. The anhydrous clay can be used in
Cement manufacturing. It can also be used in
manufacturing Fertilizers containing silica/silicates
or can be used as a soil amendment, as it poses no
harm to the soil and acts as a soil conditioner
Due to the high oil content in the Bleaching Earth, its disposal can cause
environmental hazards, since it is prone to catching fire, besides polluting the
ground water. With the regulatory restrictions in place in most countries, the
need to lessen the environmental impact is of growing importance and concern to
the industry
Usually the project implementation schedule varies from 8 months to 12 months
depending upon the location and soil condition.