Optimum stearin adulteration in palm oil crystallization

Stearin adulteration in refined palm oil crystallization was investigated for industrial separation of stearin and olein. The important standard properties of olein are the iodine value which must be higher than 55-57, and the cloud point which must be lower than 9ºC. The crystallization temperature is the most important parameter of the process to obtain the standard olein properties and should not exceed 20ºC. Longer crystallization time is possibly the cause of lower yields but higher quality. The stearin adulteration at the ratio of 1:9 leads to higher yields, but the quality of stearin adulteration shows unimportant effects. The uniformity of heat and mass transfer in the crystallization process are important factors in obtaining higher yields and quality of olein.