Flotation separation of dry milled cereal grain components

Claim 1

A FLOTATION PROCESS FOR FRACTIONATING A SUBSTANTIALLY BRAN-FREE DRY-MILLED MIXTURE OF CORN GERMS AND CORN ENDOSPERMS HAVING A COMBINED AVERAGE OIL CONTENT OF ABOUT 9.75 PERCENT INTO A GERM FRACTION ESSENTIALLY FREE OF ENDOSPERM WHCH FRACTION IS CHARACTERIZED BY AN OIL CONTENT OF ABOUT 34.8 PERCENT AND A PLURALITY OF ENDOSPERM FRACTION HAVING RESPECTIVE AVERAGE OIL CONTENTS OF 0.75 PERCENT, 0.55 PERCENT, AND 0.38 PERCENT, SAID PROCESS COMPRISING; (A) INTRODUCING THE MILLED CORN MIXTURE INTO THE MIDHEIGHT OF A VERTICALLY-DISPOSED TUBULAR FLOTATION APPARATUS THAT IS FULLY OCCUPIED BY A COLUMN OF WATER THAT IS FLOWING UPWARDLY FROM A BOTTOM INLET AT A CONSTANT VELOCITY OF 5.5 FT. PER MINUTE; (B) SEPARATELY COLLECTING THE SAID GERM FRACTION FROM THE UPPER DISCHARGE END OF THE APPARATUS AND FROM THE LOWER END THEREOF A CRUDE ENDOSPERM FRACTION HAVING AN AVERAGE OIL CONTENT OF 0.48 PERCENT;