Oil Extraction Rate Determination Technique Based on Dielectric Constant of Palm Fruit

Since oil palm fruit produces highest yields per cultivated area and its product can be used for many consumer products, it will thus significantly impact to the global economics. This paper proposes a simple technique to determine oil extraction rate of palm fruit. Based on the dielectric constant measurement at microwave frequency, oil extraction rate of palm fruit is found to be inversly proportional to dielectric constant of the palm fruit. This leads to a mathematical model for determining OER in palm fruit. Validity of the model capability for determining OER is proven by predicintg OER of several palm fruit samples. The technique can achieves accuracy of 95.63% for OER determination.