International Journal of Multidisciplinary Sciences and Advanced Technology Vol 2 No 8 (2021) 7–12

International Journal of Multidisciplinary Sciences

and Advanced Technology
Journal home page: http://www.ijmsat.com

Optimization of Bleaching Parameters of Palm Oil Using Major Porta

Adsorbent

Moses Tara Langkuk 1, Elkanah Micah Dawes 2, Samuel Iliya Samkwar 2,

Adedirin Oluwaseye 1, Francis Dommun Davuram 3
1
Chemistry Advanced Research Center (CARC), Sheda science and technology complex (SHESTCO), Km 10
Gwalgwalada-Abuja-Lokoja Road, Sheda, FCT, P.M.B 186, Garki, Abuja, Nigeria.
2
Chemistry Department, University of Jos, P. M. B 2084, Jos, Plateau State, Nigeria.
3
Modibbo Adama University of Technology, Yola, P.M.B. 2076, Yola, Adamawa State, Nigeria

Corresponding Author: Langkuk M. T. (langkukmr9@gmail.com)

Original article Received 28 June 2021, Accepted 18 July 2021, Available online 01 August 2021

ABSTRACT

Optimization of the bleaching process of red oil using acid activated Major Porta adsorbent (M1) was presented in this
study. Through a series of batch experiments, several samples of palm oil were bleached at various temperatures, times,
and adsorbent dosage using M1 and Fuller’s earth, a commercial bleaching agent (CBE). The optical absorbance of the
oil samples (raw and bleached) were measured at 450nm wavelength with UV Spectrophotometer and petroleum ether
was used as reference. Bleaching performances of M1 and CBE were calculated and physico-chemical properties of raw
and bleached oil were determined using standard methods for the purpose of comparison. Bleaching performance of M1
was found to compare well with that of CBE under optimum conditions. The optimum condition for the bleaching
process was found to be: contact time (10 minutes), temperature (1000C) and adsorbent to oil ratio (1g: 30g). At
optimum conditions M1 and CBE had bleaching performance (BP) of 90.466% and 95.673% respectively. Physico-
chemical properties of the M1—bleached oil showed considerable improvement compared with the properties of the raw
oil. Thus, activated Major Porta clay is a viable source of adsorbent for the bleaching of palm oil.

Key Words: Adsorbent, adsorptive bleaching, optimization, Red oil.

This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).

1. Introduction

Raw palm oil usually contain impurities like organic pigments, trace metals and trace soaps which impact
negatively the quality (taste, appearance, smell and shelf life) of the oil. Hence for palm oil to be used effectively, in
most industrial processes, they need to be refined. There are basically two types of refining processes available in the
vegetable oils industries, viz chemical and physical refining (Farihahusnah et al., 2011; Rossi et al., 2003). These
processes comprise of several stages such as degumming, neutralization, bleaching and deodorization (Farihahusnah et
al., 2011, Berbesi, 2006).

Adsorptive bleaching, a process designed solely for the removal of pigments and other trace constituents by
adsorption process, is the most efficient form of bleaching in which various adsorbents like carbon, silica gel, activated
alumina and activated clay are used (Okwara and Osoka, 2006). The refining of these oils especially palm oil, through
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adsorptive bleaching remains inevitable in the vegetable oil refining industry as it removes impurities out of oils
(Young, 1982; Macrae, 1993; Campbell et.al, 1999). Clays used for adsorption bleaching may be naturally active or
activated clays. Naturally active clays have high surface area, and as a result possess some bleaching activity and show
high adsorption capacity. However, activated bleaching clays are reported to show a much higher activity (Usman et al.,
2012). Natural clays are acquiring prominence as low-cost adsorbents (Eba et al., 2010, Babel and Kurniawan, 2003)
over the last few decades due to their local and abundant availability over and above the capability to undergo
modification to enhance the surface area, adsorption capacity, and range of applicability (Usman et al., 2013;
Monvisade and Siriphannon, 2009; Motlagh et al., 2008; James et al., 2008). There are several ways in which the
bleaching efficiency of clay can be enhanced. Examples include physical/chemical activation, pillaring and heat
treatment (Motlagh et al., 2008). In chemical activation, mineral acid (e.g. HCl, H2SO4, H3PO4, HNO3), some organic
acid and alkalis (Akinwande et al., 2015) are used to treat the raw clay.

Bleaching process, like any other process, is affected by a number of factors, which are usually fine-tuned to
get the best outcome. The most important oil bleaching parameters include clay dosage, residence time, mixing rate,
temperature, and atmospheric pressure and vacuum (Wiedermann, 1981). Oil bleaching is usually performed under
steam/nitrogen blanket, vacuum, or in an open vessel. The vacuum provides advantages, like low temperature drying
oils, moisture removal from clay, and avoidance of contact with oxygen of the air (Usman et al., 2012) as the activated
clay may act as a catalyst for oxidation at elevated temperature which will affect the quality of the product. The
literature reveals that bleaching process is generally carried out at contact time ranging from 20 to 40 minutes and
temperature range of 80 to 120 0C in a vacuum. Adsorbent dosage can vary depending on the oil type (Usman et al.,
2012). Additionally, activated clay dosage should be the minimum amount to effect removal of impurities (Valenzuel &
De Souza, 2001)

Clay materials are available in Nigeria in abundant quantities and some are already being used for production
of ceramics, bricks and pottery. However, the exploitation of the adsorption capacity of these clay materials for their
possible use as bleaching earth are limited (Okwara and Osoka, 2006). In this study, clay material obtained from Major
Porta Village in Riyom Local Government Area of Plateau state was activated and its capacity to bleach Palm oil was
studied and compared with that of Fuller’s earth, a commercial bleaching earth (CBE).
.
2. Materials and Method
2. 1. Sample Collection and Treatment
.
Major Porta adsorbent (M1) was prepared from Major Porta (MP) clay, a brown kaolin clay, sample obtained
from Major Porta Village of Riyom Local Government Area of Plateau State, Nigeria by refluxing a mixture of dried
200 mesh clay sample with HCl under optimized conditions (1M acid concentration, 60 minutes contact time, 10%
(w/v) clay-acid dosage and 1000C temperature), determined in an earlier study (Dawes et al., 2021). Fuller’s Earth, a
commercial bleaching earth (CBE), used for comparison and crude palm oil (CPO) were purchased, respectively, from a
chemical shop in Jos north of Plateau State, Nigeria.

2. 2. Analysis of Palm Oil Color

According to the AOCS official method Cc 13e – 92 (Revised 2002), color changes of oil was measured by
Lovibond Tintometer. The method determined the color by matching the color of the light transmitted through a
specific depth of liquid fat or oil to the color of the light originating from the same source, transmitted through glass
color standards. Red, yellow and blue colors were used for edible oils.

2. 3. Determination of Free Fatty Acid Value

Free fatty acid value (FFA) content in the crude and bleached palm oils were determined using titration method
by Rohani et al and Lubrizol test procedure (Rohani et al., 2006; Lubrizol test procedure, 2010).

2. 4. Determination of Oil Density

Density (D) of both crude palm oil and bleached palm oil were determined using a pycnometer. First the
weight of empty pycnometer was determined, and then it was filled with oil. The density of oil was calculated in
using equation 1 shown below

(1)

Where = weight of oil and V is the volume of the pycnometer.

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2. 5. Evaluation of Bleaching Performance

The procedure used for the bleaching of the palm oil is an adaptation of the procedure described by Nde-Aga et
al. (2007). 30g of raw palm oil was poured into a 50ml beaker and then heated up to 100 0C on a magnetic hot plate.
0.5g M1 sample was added to the hot oil. The temperature was maintained at 100 0C for 30 minutes. After 30 minutes,
the mixture was filtered through Whatman no. 1 filter paper. This process was repeated with dosage of 1.0 g, 1.5 g, 2.0
g, 2.5 g, and 3.0g in order to determine the effect of dosage. The effect of temperature was studied at 60 0C, 800C, 1000C
and 1200C and the effect of contact time was studied at 10 minutes, 20 minutes, 30 minutes, 40 minutes, and 60
minutes.

The absorbance of the palm oil was measured according to the procedure described by Nde Aga et al (2007)
using a UV Spectrophotometer. 0.1g of bleached palm oil was measured into a beaker containing 7.5ml of petroleum
ether, the mixture was then poured into a cuvette and the absorbance read at 450nm wavelength using petroleum ether
as reference. The absorbance readings were used to calculate bleaching performance using equation 2.

% BP = × 100 (2)

Where, A0 = absorbance of unbleached palm oil and At = absorbance of bleached palm oil at time, t.
3. Result and Discussion

3. 1. Effect of Contact time on Bleaching Performance

The result of effect of contact time on bleaching performance (BP) of the adsorbents (M1 and CBE) studied for
time ranging from 5 to 60 minutes was presented in Figure 1.

120 Figure 1.
Effect of
100 contact
time on
80 bleachin
g of
BP (%)

60
palm oil
using
M1 and
40 CBE

20 B
P of M1
0
and
CBE
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70
increase
TIME (MIN)
d
rapidly
M1 CBE with
contact
time up to an optimum contact time of 10 minutes beyond which there is considerable increase in BP. Similar
observations were reported by Usman et al., (2013) and Nwabanne and Ekwu (2013). The optimum contact time of 10
minutes corresponds to BP of 94.1184% and 95.443% respectively for M 1 and CBE. The rapid pigment adsorption by
the adsorbent in the first 10 minutes can be attributed to the increased availability of vacant surface sites at the initial
stages. The optimal contact time of 10 minutes for the M1 is not in agreement with the report of Berbesi (2006) who
concluded that the contact time for effective bleaching normally ranges from 15 to 45 minutes, with 20 to 30 minutes
being the most common. After 40 minutes the adsorption was slow, implying equilibrium conditions had been attained.
As shown in Figure 1, the effect of contact time on bleaching of palm oil with CBE was similar to that of M1. Thus, it is
clear that M1 can be used to bleach crude vegetable oil in place of the CBE.

3. 2. Effect of Temperature on Bleaching Performance

Figure 2 showed the effect of oil temperature on bleaching performance of M1 and CBE. The two bleaching
agents behaved in a similar way as depicted in Figure 2. As shown BP increased with temperature to a maximum and
then remained constant for both M1 and CBE. It can be deduced that the highest bleaching performance was obtained
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at 100°C, corresponding to BP of 93.278% and 94.575% for M1and CBE respectively. The optimum temperature of
1000C agrees with a similar observation by Berbesi (2006), who noted that bleaching temperature typically ranges from
90-125 °C. He also noted that oil viscosity decreases with increasing temperature resulting in better dispersion of
adsorbent particles, improved clay-oil interactions and less resistance to flow.

120

100

80
BP (%)

60

40

20

0
0 20 40 60 80 100 120 140
TEMPERATURE (0C)

M1 CBE

Figure 2. Effect of temperature on bleaching of palm oil using M 1 and CBE

3. 3. Effect of Clay Dosage on Bleaching Performance

The effect of clay dosage on bleaching performance of the agents was conducted with dosage range of 0.5g to
2.5g and the result was depicted with Figure 3. As shown, BP of M1 and CBE increased to a maximum with increasing
clay dosage. This can be attributed to the increase in active sites available for adsorption. The bleaching performance
of M1 and CBE increased from 40 % and 48 % respectively at adsorbent dosage of 0.5g to optimum values of 84 % and
87 % respectively at adsorbent dosage of 1.0g, beyond which further increase in adsorbent dosage had little effect on
BP. The attainment of a steady bleaching efficiency beyond the optimum in both cases can be explained by the fact that
adsorption equilibrium has been reached between the adsorbent/oil mixtures, thereby preventing further pigment
removal by the excess adsorbent dosage. Diaz and de Souza (2001) stated that darker oils like palm oil require as much
as 1.5% - 2.5 % or more to meet the colour requirements. Also Nwabanne and Ekwu (2013) have reported the increase
of BP with increase in clay dosage for decolourization of palm oil using local Nigerian clay.

100
90
80
70
60
Bp (%)

50
40
30
20
10
0
0 0.5 1 1.5 2 2.5 3
Dosage (g)
M1 CBE

Figure 3. Effect of clay dosage on bleaching of palm oil using M 1 and CBE

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3. 4. Physical and Chemical Properties of Raw and Bleached Palm Oil

Some of the properties of the raw and bleached palm oil were studied for comparison. Table 2 below showed
some of the properties of the raw and M1—bleached palm oil. The results showed clearly that after bleaching, the oil
became brighter and less coloured due to the removal of colour-producing material like the carotenoids as reported by
Euphrosine (2012).

Property Raw Palm oil Bleached Palm oil

Colour Reddish Yellowish

Odour Palm oil odour Palm fruit odour

Taste Palm fruit taste Blend taste

Melting Point (0C) 36.00 40.00
Absorbance 3.00 1.146
Density (g/cm3) 0.938 0.936
% FFA 2.80 0.18

Table 2. Physical and Chemical properties of Raw Palm oil and M 1-Bleached Palm oil

4. Conclusion

A study of the adsorptive purification of palm oil using acid activated Major Porta adsorbent has been
successfully carried out. On the investigation of the effect of various operating parameters on bleaching of palm oil,
such as, contact time, adsorbent dosage and temperature, it was found that the optimal contact time, adsorbent
dosage and temperature were 10 minutes, 1 % and 80 °C respectively. Activated Major Porta clay (M1) under
optimized conditions compared well in terms of bleaching performance with the commercial bleaching agent (CBE).
The optimum bleaching condition was equivalent to a bleaching efficiency of 90.466 % and 95.673% for the Major
Porta adsorbent and CBE respectively, indicating that Major Porta clay is a viable source of adsorbent for palm oil
bleaching.

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