DEVELOPMENT AND PERFORMANCE EVALUATION OF CASHEW (Anacardium occidentale L.) JUICE EXTRACTION MACHINE

Abstract

In spite of the nutritional value of cashew apples (Anacardium occidentale L.), commercial focus is mainly on the nut, resulting in vast quantities of cashew apples going to waste when not processed. Hence, to address this problem, a cashew juice extraction machine was developed, optimization was carried out on its performance with respect to machine parameters, and quality of the juice was assessed using response surface methodology. The machine comprises of a hopper, belt and pulley arrangement, reduction gear, top cover, frame, and extraction chamber. The major material used was stainless steel. During the extraction process, the screw conveyor presses the cashew apples against the concave sieve, extracting juice through abrasion. Performance evaluation of the machine was done and optimized using response surface methodology. Data analysis was done using Analysis of Variance. Optimum juice extraction efficiency and juice yield were 85.05 and 72.42% respectively with screw speed of 80 rpm and 1.5 kg feed input for very ripe cashew apples. For ripe cashew apples, maximum extraction loss was 20% at 60 rpm and 2 kg feed input. Lowest loss was 3.33% for very ripe cashew apples at 80 rpm and 1.5 kg feed input. The optimized operational conditions were 88.53 rpm screw speed and 1.726 kg feed input for very ripe cashew apples, and 91.05 rpm screw speed and 1.724 kg feed input for ripe ones. The physicochemical analysis of extracted juice showed that cashew ripe juice had 198 mg/100g vitamin C, pH 3.37, 21.67 total sugar content, 0.38 TTA, 0.17 tannin, 72.83% moisture content, and 10 o Brix TSS. Sensory evaluation of cashew ripe juice was highest at 7.40±1.35. In conclusion, the most nutritious juice was from very ripe cashew apples. This machine proved to enhance cashew apple juice production and therefore reduce waste especially during its bountiful harvest.