Performance evaluation of a screw press expeller for oil extraction from white Melon (Cucumeropsis mannii) seeds

Abstract

This study investigated the effects of varying the speed, pressure, time, and temperature across multiple levels on the performance of a screw press expeller for extracting oil from white melon (Cucumeropsis mannii) seeds. A factorial design was implemented, consisting of three factors and three levels each, resulting in a total of 27 experimental runs. The data from the experiments were analysed using ANOVA and modelled with the Response Surface Methodology (RSM).  The findings revealed that speed, pressure, and extraction time influenced oil yield significantly (p value < 0.005). The results obtained for throughput were also similar. In both cases, speed has the greatest effects. The conditions for optimal oil yield, determined statistically were 550 rpm speed, screw pressure of 6 turns, and time of 9 minutes, giving an oil yield of 29% at a throughput of 13 kg/min. Thus, while maintaining low pressure settings may reduce operational complexity and costs, speed adjustments are vital for optimizing the screw press's performance. These findings provide practical guidelines for the industrial application of screw presses, offering insights into achieving higher efficiency in oilseed processing.