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What is oil hydrogenation? Hydrogenated oil is a type of oil in which the essential fatty acids have been changed into a different form by chemical changes. These oils have been hydrogenated in various industries for several decades to increase their shelf life and achieve higher stability. For this reason, hydrogenated oil degrades more slowly than unrefined oils.
This type of oil also has a higher melting point and is often used in cooking and frying. Hydrogenating oil alters its chemical structure, which scientists discovered in the 1990s may have negative health effects.
Many scientific studies have shown that the consumption of hydrogenated oils is related to diseases such as diabetes, vascular problems and obesity. Health experts recommend that people limit their consumption of hydrogenated oils and use healthy fats such as olive oil, avocado and nuts to reduce their exposure to trans fats.
Hydrogenated oil is produced by a chemical process called hydrogenation, in which liquid oils are converted into solid form. Among the hydrogenated oils, we can mention soybean oil, olive oil, peanut oil, canola oil, and various oils that are produced during this process.
Hydrogenated oils are bad for health because they contain trans fats, which can increase the risk of heart disease and other health-related problems. These oils may also increase chronic inflammation and increase the risk of blood clots.
Both animal and vegetable oils can be hydrogenated. In general, the more solid the oil, the more hydrogen it contains. Two common examples of hydrogenated oils include Crisco and margarine. Unstable fatty acids found in vegetable and animal oils are unsaturated fats that are healthier for consumers and in some cases help lower cholesterol.
When oil is hydrogenated, the healthy fats in it are converted into a new type of fatty acid called trans fat. Trans fats have very negative effects on health. In some fully hydrogenated oils, such as margarine, trans fats account for almost half of the product’s total fat content.
Trans fats increase LDL cholesterol or bad cholesterol in the body and at the same time decrease the level of HDL cholesterol or good cholesterol. This shows that trans fats in hydrogenated oil are even more harmful than saturated fats. Additionally, there is evidence that trans fatty acids may accumulate in the body because the digestive system has difficulty breaking them down and processing them. As a result, a diet containing high amounts of trans fats can lead to weight gain and various health problems.
Hydrogenation is a chemical process used to convert liquid oils into solids in the food industry. This process helps manufacturers to extend the shelf life of food and give products a more durable texture.
During hydrogenation, oil molecules are saturated with the addition of hydrogen and become saturated fats. This process produces two types of hydrogenated oil:
1. Semi-hydrogen oil
2. Fully hydrogenated oil
Semi-hydrogenated oil is more harmful due to its high content of trans fat. Fully hydrogenated oil, which does not contain trans fat, is increasingly replacing partially hydrogenated oils in foods. However, fully hydrogenated oil can also have negative health effects.
Fully hydrogenated oil exists as a saturated fat called stearic acid. Fortunately, stearic acid is not associated with cardiovascular disease and is converted into oleic acid, a healthy monounsaturated fat, once it enters the body.
To reduce the risks associated with cardiovascular diseases, it is recommended to reduce the consumption of saturated fats and replace them with unsaturated fats in the diet.
To increase the melting point of vegetable oils and achieve greater stability at high temperatures, it is necessary to hydrogenate and remove the double and triple bonds in the fatty acid composition of these oils. This work is done using the hydrogenation method and the use of nickel catalyst. The entire hydrogenation process takes about 4 to 8 hours, depending on the type of method used, and the reaction takes place in a device called a converter, which is one of the most important steps in the oil production line.
The neutral and decolorized oil is pumped from the tank into the converter, then the agitator is activated and a vacuum is created to remove air and possible moisture in the oil. Finally, the steam is turned on to heat the oil and the process goes to the next step.
When the temperature of the oil reaches about 100-110°C (during this time the oil has been heated and mixed under vacuum and has lost its moisture and dissolved gases), the nickel catalyst, which was previously at a temperature of about 80-100°C in A separate reservoir with mixed oil is injected into the converter by a pump or through a vacuum. The amount of catalyst varies according to the type of oil, the type of catalyst and the desired level of hydrogenation (full or partial), but is usually around 400 to 700 grams per ton in most cases.
After injecting the catalyst and raising the temperature to about 130 degrees Celsius, the vacuum is closed and hydrogen gas enters the converter. When the reaction starts, due to the exothermic nature of the process, the flow of steam into the coils is stopped and the cooling water replaces it to remove the released heat from the system. It is necessary that the reaction temperature does not exceed 200 degrees Celsius.
At this stage of the production line, hydrogen gas is continuously injected and the hydrogenation reaction continues until the desired point is reached. After reaching the final point, the flow of hydrogen gas is cut off and the vacuum is immediately activated so that the dissolved gases are quickly removed from the oil and the reaction is stopped. To control and evaluate the progress of the reaction and reach the desired point, the melting point test or refract measurement is used; Refract test is preferred because of the faster reaction time.
During the hydrogenation stage, the pressure of excess gases may increase at the top of the converter and prevent the entry of hydrogen gas from the lower nozzle. In such a situation, these gases must be vented so that the flow of hydrogen gas is maintained continuously. It is also possible to use the partial circulation method and the use of an ejector in these converters to reduce the pressure of the upper part of the converter, which will be explained in the following discussion.
After the completion of the reaction and achieving the desired characteristics, the cooling process continues until the temperature of the oil reaches about 100 degrees Celsius. Then the oil is sent to special filters to separate the nickel catalyst.
In the hydrogenation process of the oil production line, two types of converters are mainly used, namely **Dead End** and **Loop Reactor**. In the **Dead End** system, a stirrer is used and the entire reaction takes place inside the converter. But in the **Loop Reactor** system, instead of a stirrer, the oil circulates using a pump and passes through an ejector. This causes the absorption of hydrogen gas from the top of the converter and its intense mixing with the oil, which improves the efficiency and speed of the reaction.
Also, there is a combined method in which in **Dead End** converters, a stream of oil is passed through an ejector to absorb the accumulated gases on top of the converter and reduce the pressure of this area. This ejector continuously returns the gases above the converter to the oil flow in the converter and avoids the need to vent the gases.
You’re probably familiar with the concepts of saturated and unsaturated fats, but many people don’t fully understand what these terms mean. To better explain, imagine the fatty acid as a large dining room table with 10 chairs on each side. This table represents the backbone of the fatty acid and the chairs are the points that can bond with other atoms and molecules.
When this table is completely full and each chair is occupied by one person, it can be said that the dining table is completely saturated. In the hydrogenation process, you fill this table (or fatty acid backbone) with hydrogen.
When the oil is completely saturated with hydrogen atoms, it becomes a saturated fat. Saturated fats are the most stable type of fat because hydrogen helps solidify the fat and prevent unwanted reactions with other molecules.
But if one or more seats remain empty, the table is only partially saturated. Polyunsaturated and polyunsaturated fats are examples of fatty acids that have a few empty seats at their tables. Natural unsaturated fats are very important and provide many health benefits. However, in the hydrogenation process, if the chairs are filled with hydrogen atoms, this chemical reaction can cause the chairs to rotate.
Now you have a dining table with some chairs turned 180 degrees. This position looks very strange and confuses your body. This process of hydrogenation and turning the chairs around produces trans fats.
The hydrogenation process of oil causes the production of trans fat, which changes the chemical composition of the oil and makes its metabolism and digestion more difficult for the body. For this reason, these fats accumulate in the body instead of burning and producing energy. Due to the serious health risks caused by consuming foods containing trans fat, food manufacturers have gradually eliminated this type of fat and have been able to reduce the amount of food containing trans fat by 78%.
This method is used for palm family oils and different types of palm oil with different melting points are separated from it. In this process, the oil is cooled for a certain period in special crystallizers that have stirrers and cooling coils and turns into two solid and liquid phases. Then these phases are directed to special membrane filters to be separated from each other. Each of these phases has its own uses and uses. Also, the mechanism and equipment required for the fractionation of palm oil and palm kernel oil are different from each other and each of these oils needs its own special equipment.
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Petro Imen Sharif Engineering Company was founded in 2010 by a group of engineers and specialists graduated from top universities in Iran, who believe in the motto “Desire creates” and with a focus on advancing scientific movements in the field of environmental protection.
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