Activation of indigenous earths for bleaching of vegetable oils.

Fullers earth is a naturally occurring clay which
is largely used in the oil industry for clarification
and decolourisation, either alone or in conjunction
with other adsorbents like activated
carbon. Owing to the expansion of the hydrogenated
oil industry the demand for bleaching
earths is on the increase. Natural fullers earth is
not available in India in sufficient amounts. The
use of imported varieties of bleaching earths
increases considerably the cost of bleaching of
oils. Consequently, several workers (2-4) have
investigated the suitability of indigenous clays
after activation by different methods, for the
bleaching of oils. The present paper deals with
the results of investigations carried out on the
activation and bleaching properties of four clays
occurring in Mysore State.