Development of a small scale orange juice extractor.

A small scale motorized orange juice extractor was designed and fabricated, using locally-available construction materials. The essential components of the machine include feeding hopper, top cover, worm shaft, juice sieve, juice collector, waste outlet, transmission belt, main frame, pulleys and bearings. In operation, the worm shaft conveys, crushes, presses and squeezes the fruit to extract the juice. The juice extracted is filtered through the juice sieve into juice collector while the residual waste is discharged through waste outlet. Result showed that the average juice yield and juice extraction efficiency were 41.6 and 57.4%, respectively. Powered by a 2 hp electric motor, the machine has a capacity of 14 kg/h. With a machine cost of about $100, it is affordable for small-scale citrus farmers in the rural communities.