Industrial photography of a palm oil refinery in Central Africa, large stainless steel processing vessels, steam pipes, control room with SCADA displays, warm tropical lighting, workers in hard hats, clean industrial facility, editorial style
50 TPD Palm Oil Physical Refinery in Cameroon
Full RBD refining plus dry fractionation transforms variable-quality Cameroonian CPO into premium palm olein and stearin — each commanding higher margins than crude palm oil.
Project Overview
Cameroon is one of Central Africa's most significant palm oil producers, with extensive plantations in the Littoral and South West regions. A Douala-based palm oil trader had established reliable access to large volumes of crude palm oil (CPO) from local mills but was selling it at commodity prices — capturing none of the substantial processing margin available through refining.
The incoming CPO quality was typical of small Central African mills: FFA ranging 4–8% (elevated due to delayed fruit processing), high moisture (0.3–0.5%), and deep reddish colour from high carotene content. This quality profile ruled out simple filtration and required a proper refinery.
SinoOil designed a physical refinery specifically calibrated for Cameroon's high-carotene CPO: double degumming (first with water for hydratable phospholipids, then with citric acid for non-hydratable phospholipids), followed by vacuum bleaching with 2.5% acid-activated earth dosing — higher than standard to neutralize the carotene load. Steam deodorizing at 240–260°C under vacuum removes FFA as distillate.
The fractionation system — two crystallizers and a membrane filter press — separates the RBD palm oil into liquid olein (74%, used as cooking oil) and solid stearin (26%, used by a local margarine and soap manufacturer). This product split creates two distinct revenue streams at higher margins than CPO.
The Siemens S7-1200 PLC with full SCADA display enables the Douala team to monitor and control the entire process from a single panel. A heat recovery system pre-heats incoming oil against outgoing product streams, recovering 85% of thermal energy and reducing natural gas consumption by approximately 30%.
Process Flow
From variable-quality Cameroon CPO to RBD palm oil, then separated into cooking olein and industrial stearin.
Equipment List
Full machinery list for the 50 TPD Douala palm oil physical refinery and dry fractionation plant.
| # | Equipment | Model | Qty | Function |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | CPO receiving pump + strainer | — | 1 | Handles 4–8% FFA crude palm oil intake |
| 2 | CPO storage tanks (heated) | — | 3 | 20T each, 40°C heating coils to maintain liquid state |
| 3 | Pre-degumming vessel | PD-5T | 1 | Hot-water treatment, removes hydratable phospholipids |
| 4 | Acid degumming vessel | AD-5T | 1 | Citric acid treatment for non-hydratable phospholipid removal |
| 5 | Vacuum bleaching vessel | BL-5T | 1 | 2.5% acid-activated earth; removes colour, peroxides |
| 6 | Niagara leaf filter press | NF-50 | 1 | Spent bleaching earth separation |
| 7 | Packed-column deodorizer | DO-5T | 1 | Steam stripping at 240–260°C, 3 mbar vacuum; FFA to <0.1% |
| 8 | Two-stage vacuum system | 2BV-5161 | 1 | Steam ejector + water-ring pump for deodorizer vacuum |
| 9 | Fire-tube steam generator | WNS-1.5 | 1 | 1.5T/h steam, natural gas fired, for deodorizer and heating |
| 10 | Heat recovery heat exchangers | — | 4 | Pre-heats incoming oil against outgoing product; 85% recovery |
| 11 | Fractionation crystallizer | FC-50 | 2 | Controlled cooling 18–22°C for olein/stearin crystal formation |
| 12 | Membrane filter press (fractionation) | MFP-50 | 1 | Squeezes olein from stearin crystal cake |
| 13 | Olein and stearin storage tanks | — | 4 | 15T each, separate olein and stearin storage |
| 14 | PLC control system with SCADA | Siemens S7-1200 | 1 | Full process control and monitoring display |
Results
Verified performance outcomes from the Douala refinery after 8 months of commercial operation.
"Before this plant, we were selling CPO at commodity prices. Now we sell RBD palm olein to food manufacturers and stearin to a soap factory. The margin improvement is substantial. The heat recovery system saves us 30% on gas costs. SinoOil designed it specifically for our high-carotene Cameroon CPO — they understood the technical challenges."— Managing Director, palm oil refinery, Douala, Cameroon | March 2023
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View all Africa projects →Frequently Asked Questions
Technical questions on palm oil refining, fractionation, and West/Central Africa palm processing.
What is the difference between crude palm oil (CPO) and RBD palm oil?
Crude palm oil (CPO) is the raw oil pressed from fresh palm fruit bunches. It has a deep red-orange colour (from carotenoids), a characteristic palm odour, high FFA (2–8%), and contains phospholipids, moisture, and impurities. RBD palm oil (Refined, Bleached, Deodorized) has been processed to remove these: FFA reduced to under 0.1%, colour reduced to under 3R (pale yellow), odour neutral, moisture under 0.1%. RBD is the food-industry standard for palm oil in cooking, margarine, and food manufacturing.
What is palm oil fractionation?
Palm oil fractionation separates palm oil into two fractions with different melting points: palm olein (liquid fraction, melting point 18–24°C) used as cooking oil, and palm stearin (solid fraction, melting point 44–56°C) used in margarine, shortening, and soap. The separation is achieved by controlled cooling (crystallization) followed by filtration. Dry fractionation (no solvent) is the standard method for food-grade products.
How much CPO is required to produce 1 tonne of RBD palm oil?
To produce 1 tonne of RBD palm oil, approximately 1.08–1.12 tonnes of CPO are required. Refinery losses include FFA removal (neutralization or physical steam stripping), bleaching earth (2–3% of oil), deodorizing distillate (0.3–0.8%), and process losses. Physical refining (steam stripping) has lower losses than chemical refining (caustic neutralization) and is preferred for high-FFA palm oil.
What fuel is required to run a palm oil refinery?
A 50 TPD physical palm oil refinery requires primarily steam (for deodorizing and heat transfer) and electricity. Steam consumption: approximately 300–400 kg per tonne of oil processed. A 1.5T/h steam generator (natural gas, LPG, or biomass-fired) is typical. With a heat recovery system, fuel consumption is reduced by 30–40%. Electricity requirement: approximately 15–25 kWh/tonne processed.
Can a palm oil refinery process other oils besides palm?
Yes. A multi-purpose refinery can process most vegetable oils. The key differences are processing parameters: temperature settings, bleaching earth dosage (palm CPO needs 2–3%, lower for sunflower/soybean), and deodorizing time. A refinery designed for palm CPO can typically switch to sunflower, soybean, or cottonseed crude with parameter adjustments. Our Douala plant was designed with multi-oil capability as a future option.
Plan Your Palm Oil Refinery
Physical refinery + fractionation plants from 20 TPD to 500 TPD. Designed around your CPO quality profile. Free engineering consultation included.