Studies on the extraction of wheat germ oil by commercial hexane

Extraction of an edible oil from wheat germ, an important byproduct of wheat milling industry in Egypt, using commercial hexane was studied. The extraction was carried out in a single and in two successive stages using different solvent-to-solid ratios from 2 to 6 m(3) / ton. The results showed that a good oil recovery (about 75%) can be achieved using 4 m(3) hexane for each ton germ extracted in a single stage. This amount of solvent can be reduced to 2.5 m(3) / ton if the process is carried out in two successive stages. The study has shown also that the amount of oil recovered from wheat germ is not significantly affected by heating the extraction mixture during the extraction process. The developments of free acids and peroxides in the oil during the storage period of wheat germ prior to extraction and during the hot extraction process were also investigated.