• What is corn germ oil?
  • Corn germ oil is a by-product of the corn oil milling process. Most corn that is harvested is used as feed but the proportion of the corn that is milled is increasing because of bioethanol production. During the wet milling process, the germ is isolated from the starch using cyclone separators, washed, and dried.
  • How to extract oil from corn germ?
  • Various organic solvents and water have been used for the extraction of corn germ oil. The most common commercial process for obtaining oil from corn germ is extraction by n -hexane because of its high extraction efficiency and low process cost.
  • How is corn germ extracted from starch?
  • During the wet milling process, the germ is isolated from the starch using cyclone separators, washed, and dried. The dried germ contains about 50% oil, in which the oil constitutes about 85% of the total amount of oil present in the corn. The oil is produced by first expelling the germ and then extracting the expeller cake with n -hexane.
  • Can corn germs be milled before oil extraction?
  • Grinding oilseeds prior to oil extraction may enlarge the interface between material particles and aqueous solvent or enzyme, and then enhance free oil yield. In previous research, colloid milling was employed to mill corn germs (Dickey et al. 2010 ). In this study, a dry milling method was developed to grind corn germ.
  • Is corn germ oil good for You?
  • Corn germ (dry) contains 35¨C56 % oil, with linoleic acid (C18:2) being the predominant fatty acid (49¨C61.9 %) and the highest level of tocopherol and phytosterol amongst all vegetable oils, which is a cost-effective resource for healthy nutritious oil. As estimated 2.4 million metric tons corn oil is produced annually worldwide (Moreau 2011 ).
  • How to increase oil yield from corn germs?
  • The oil yield from corn germs depends on factors such as the type of pre-heating, moisture content, temperature, screw speed, and nozzle diameter. To increase the oil yield, heating the corn germs in a conventional (at 180?¡ãC) or microwave (at 1500?W and 2450?MHz) oven can be carried out.