Our oils are used to manufacture bio-based products for food and beverage, cosmetics and pharmaceutical, and biofuels that displace fossil fuel derived products.
The production of oils for the food and beverage industry is an area of high interest to us. Cacao (chocolate) was a driving reason for the invention of our extraction method. One area of Colombia grows one of the richest cacao trees in the world, and the levels of flavonoids, and antioxidants are greater than in other species of cacao.
Most methods of oil extraction generate heat. Using heat in extraction destroys one of the most vital key elements in products for human consumption; flavonoids. Flavonoids are the phytonutrients most plants produce, and they deteriorate and dissipate at 104°F. The maximum temperature range reached by our process is between 90°and 98°F (higher if needed), preventing deterioration of the components of the raw material.
Additionally, we are able to combine several raw materials in the reactor vessel at the same time for a product that fuses the properties of all the raw materials into a single oil. These proprietary oils have been used to fry potato chips, which were then run through the extractor, creating a zero-fat potato chip. The recovered oil was also sent back to the fryer.
Since cosmetics products are regulated by the Food and Drug Administration, oils used in these products fall more under the category of essence or essential oils. Essential oils have been used medicinally throughout history. Applications proposed by those who sell medicinal oils range from skin treatments to remedies for cancer, and often are based solely on historical accounts on the use of essential oils for these purposes. Interest in essential oils has revived in recent decades with the popularity of aromatherapy, a branch of alternative medicine that claims that essential oils and other aromatic compounds have curative effects. Oils are volatilized or diluted in carrier oil and used in massage, diffused in the air by a nebulizer, heated over a candle flame, or burned as incense.
One oil taking the market by storm, especially in the cosmetics area is Argan Oil, also known by the trademark name "Moroccan Oil." This oil is produced from the argania spinosa tree that grows in desert areas, especially in Morocco, Israel, Greece, Spain, Central America, desert areas of Mexico, and South America (in the desert area of La Guajira in Colombia).
Waste of the fish industry is utilized for extracting Omega-3 and Omega-6 oils for a vast range of products.
Fifteen years experience developing systems and methods for indoor and greenhouse growing in various grow mediums such as soil, hydroponics, deep water culture in a horizontal and vertical grow method. (Certified Indoors Cannabis Horticulturist – Oaksterdam University).
System design for oil extraction (volatiles and non-volatiles) including solvent (2 US Patents), CO2, alcohol and mechanical methods.
Providing design/build, project management and turnkey projects for all engineering disciplines (Civil, Mechanical, Fire, Electrical and Security) as well as expertise in Indoor and Greenhouse Cultivation
Bio-diesel can be made from various plants and/or plant parts (feedstock crops are currently the most commonly used).
Before processing oil produced from any plant into biodiesel, it must be tested for the concentration of Free Fatty Acids (FFA). If the concentration level is too high, the oil must be processed to reduce them.
Several plants with low enough FFA levels to require no additional processing are available. Animal fat oil can also be processed for bio-diesel fuel. Another source of oil for bio-diesel is organic waste generated from the agricultural crop fields, vegetables, fruits, and food packaging and processing facilities. Organic waste in local waste disposal sites can be an additional source.
One of the byproducts of bio-diesel fuel is glycerin, which can be refined into four different grades: commercial, food grade, cosmetics, and pharmaceutical grade.
We are concentrating our efforts on bio-diesel and jet fuel produced from the seeds of the Camelina sativa (L) plant, either as a stand-alone product or blended/fused with other plant oils, synthetic products, and petroleum-based products. Camelina was long known primarily in North America as a weed. Recently, Camelina has been recognized for its value as an oilseed crop. Oil content of the seed, on a dry weight basis, is typically between 30 and 40 percent. The oil consists of about 64 percent polyunsaturated, 30 percent monounsaturated, and 6 percent saturated fatty acids (McVay and Lamb 2008).
The species Jatropha curcas is also promising, with economic seed yield and oil recovery. The oil from Jatropha curcas can be used as a biodiesel blend up to 20%. However, the refined oil is a qualified neat biodiesel. The jatropha is under current scrutiny because of its high maintenance cost and water usage.
Shale oil, known also as kerogen oil or oil-shale oil, is unconventional oil produced from oil shale by pyrolysis, hydrogenation, or thermal dissolution. These processes convert the organic matter within the rock (kerogen) into synthetic oil and gas. The resulting oil can be used immediately as a fuel or upgraded to meet refinery feedstock specifications by adding hydrogen and removing impurities such as sulfur and nitrogen. The refined products can be used for the same purposes as those derived from crude oil. Hydrogenation and thermal dissolution (reactive fluid processes) extract the oil using hydrogen donors, solvents, or a combination thereof. Thermal dissolution involves the application of solvents at elevated temperatures and pressures, increasing oil output by cracking the dissolved organic matter.
Different methods produce shale oil with different properties. This is an area of great interest to us and our design may be modifiable to allow it to work in this area.