Design and Construction of a Motorized Citrus Juice Extractor

Abstract

This paper presents the design, construction and performance evaluation of a locally fabricated motorized citrus juice extractor for small and medium scale industry. The fabrication materials for the machine comprises of stainless steel aluminum alloy which is used for the construction of the hopper, compression chamber and collector or receiver. The presser and perforated cylindrical sieve was formed using stainless steel sheet. The power shaft was machined from stainless steel solid shaft; mild steel angle bar was used for the main frame while the transmission pulleys were machined from mild steel material. In selection of materials for the machine critical properties such as toxicity, corrosion and pitting resistance were considered. For power transmission, 4 HP electric motor, V-belt and cast iron ball bearings were used. The performance evaluation of the machine shows that the machine extraction capacity and extraction efficiency are significantly affected by the prime mover speed in revolution per minutes (rpm). The machine efficiency is found to be 84.54 %, average juice extraction capacity is 10.92 cm3/sec or 39.312 lit/h at 600 rpm and the machine capacity is 38.89 kg/h. The production cost of the machine is about N 117,800.00 (326 USD) this cost compared with the imported GG-0.5 model of similar capacity which cost about 3150 USD makes the machine considerably acquirable for use by both small and medium scale citrus juice processing plants in Nigeria.