How to produce starch from cassava?

Cassava is widely grown in more than 100 countries and regions in Africa, South America and Southeast Asia. It is the 6th largest food crop in the world. Containing 20% to 32% starch, cassava tubers are known as “King of starch”. Therefore, cassava root is one of the best tuber crops for starch production.

Fresh cassava tubers

Fresh cassava tubers are used as raw material to produce starch. The production process is as below:

1. Cassava receiving

After harvested, cassava roots are stored in the reception yard on a concrete floor. And then they will be loaded into feeding hoppers by loader. The Feeding hopper designed by Henan Jinrui company is matched with a vibration discharge device, which can prevent cassava blocking in the outlet and ensure that cassava is sent out at even speed.

2. Cleaning and washing

From feeding hopper cassava tubers are fed into the dry sieve machine to remove loose dirt, sand, and gravel. Then the cassava roots enter the washing machine. Paddle washer is used for washing the soil or dirt attached on the roots to make refining easier.

3. Cassava crushing

Crushing is the first step in the starch extraction process. The goal is to break the cell structure of cassava and release starch particles as much as possible.

Cutting machines and rasper are used in the crushing section. Firstly, cassava is cut into small pieces by a cutting machine, and then these small pieces will be crushed to the most extent by a rasper machine, ensuring a high starch extraction rate.

4. Fiber separation

A centrifuge sieve machine is used here to separate fibers from cassava slurry. Under the centrifuge force, fibers are kept on the screen and then discharged from outlet, while cassava slurry will go through the screen and then pumped into the next process. Normally, multistage centrifuge sieve machines will be applied, to ensure separation effect.

Cassava starch processing flow

5. De-sanding

After fiber separation, the desander machine uses the unique water separation system to remove sand impurities.

6. Starch refining and concentration

Here hydrocyclone station is applied to remove protein, cell liquids etc. Considering the refining effect and starch loss, our engineer designed an 18-stage hydroplane device. 1st to 3rd stages are for recycling, 4th and 5th are for concentration, 6th and 7th are for recycling and 8th to 18th are for refining and washing. Soft water will be added from the last stage hydrocyclone, to ensure purity of starch milk.

7. Dewatering and drying

Following starch refining, dehydrator and flash dryer are installed. Firstly, refined starch milk will be pumped into peeler centrifuge machine for dewatering process, from which we can get wet starch with moisture content of around 40%. And then, wet starch will be sent into a flash dryer for last drying, from which we can get dried starch with moisture content of less than 12%.

8. Product Packaging Section

Finally, the packaging machine can pack starch into bags for sale. The packaging scale can be 10kg, 25kg, 50kg, etc. Based on client’s specific requirement for bag size, Henan Jinrui company can match the suitable packer.

Henan Jinrui company is a 10-year experienced manufacturer of cassava processing machines like cassava starch processing machine, cassava flour processing machine and garri processing machine. If you plan to start your cassava starch processing plant, welcome to consult us.