Method of producing fat and edible solids from biological material using vapor heated solvent

Claim 1

The method of removing fat and water from nutritious biological material for obtaining fat and for producing a dehydrated and defatted solids residue of palatable nutritious character, which comprises providing in an azetrope-forming zone within a distillation vessel a pool in liquid form of fat solvent which forms with water from the biological material an azeotrope having a boiling temperature materially lower than the boiling temperature of the solvent itself, fragmentizing the biological material and introducing the fragmentized material into the pool of liquid solvent to form therein in the azeotrope-forming zone a pool of fluid slurry of solvent, fragmentized biological material, water, and fat in generally liquid state, heating solvent to form hot solvent vapor, introducing such hot solvent vapor into the pool of slurry within said azeotrope-forming zone below the upper surface of such pool of slurry to condense and capture the incoming solvent vapor by the liquid slurry which is kept at a temperature well below the condensing temperature of the solvent by evaporation from the pool of slurry of azeotrope at the lower boiling temperature of the latter and to boil off azeotrope from the pool of slurry by the heat gained by the slurry in cooling and condensing the incoming solvent vapor, withdrawing from the azeotrope forming zone azeotropic vapor issuing from the pool of slurry boiled by introduction thereinto and condensation and cooling therein of hot solvent vapor, removing from the azeotrope-forming zone of the distillation vessel defatted and dehydrated solids of the biological material, and removing from the azeotrope-forming zone of the distillation vessel a liquid miscella of solvent and fat removed by the solvent from the biological material, transferring said liquid miscella from the azeotrope-forming zone mentioned to a second azeotrope-forming zone isolated from the first mentioned azeotrope-forming zone, the liquid miscella and entrained solids being further heated in the second azeotrope-forming zone to a temperature higher than the boiling temperature of the azeotrope to effect further removal of water from the biological material solids by distilling off of azeotrope formed by the solvent and the residual water of the biological material solids in the second azeotrope-forming zonE, and withdrawing from the second azeotrope forming zone the azeotrope vapor.

Claim 2

The method of removing fat and water from nutritious biological material for obtaining fat and for producing a dehydrated and defatted solids residue of palatable nutritious character, which comprises providing in an azeotrope-forming zone within a distillation vessel a pool in liquid form of fat solvent which forms with water from the biological material an azeotrope having a boiling temperature materially lower than the boiling temperature of the solvent itself, said solvent having a specific gravity less than that of the biological material, said pool of solvent being divided by a perforated screen into an upper and a lower region, fragmentizing the biological material and introducing the fragmentized material at an inlet position into the upper region of the pool of liquid solvent to form therewith in the azeotrope-forming zone a pool of fluent slurry in a generally liquid state, heating solvent to form hot solvent vapor, introducing such hot solvent vapor into the lower region of the pool of slurry within said azeotrope-forming zone to capture and condense the incoming solvent vapor by the liquid slurry which is kept at a temperature well below the condensing temperature of the solvent by evaporation from the pool of slurry of azeotrope at the lower boiling temperature of the latter and to boil off azeotrope from the pool of slurry by the heat gained by the slurry in cooling and condensing the incoming solvent vapor, translating the slurry in the upper region of the pool thereof from the inlet position to an outlet position in successive portions divided from each other, withdrawing from the azeotrope-forming zone azeotropic vapor issuing from the pool of slurry boiled by the introduction thereinto and cooling and condensation therein of hot solvent vapor, removing from the discharge position in the azeotrope-forming zone of the distillation vessel defatted and dehydrated solids of the biological material, and removing from the azeotrope-forming zone a liquid miscella of solvent and fat removed by the solvent from the biological material.