The walnut processing line is selected based on the volume and quality of the purchased raw materials. The basis of an industrial line in any production is a nutcracker and sorting equipment.
For an industrial enterprise, cone nutcrackers are chosen, because they have the most gentle cracking principle. The main differences between cone nutcrackers are their productivity – 50, 100 or 200 kg / h.
Sorting equipment is aimed at reducing the amount of manual labor for cracking and sorting walnuts:
- The vibrating sieve sorts the cracked walnut into fractions – 1 / 2,1 / 4, 1/8 and undersized.
- The aspiration column separates the kernel from the shell, baffles and dust.
There are equipments that combine both a vibrating sieve and aspiration. They save time, reduce the number of workers and prevent damage to the kernels when moving between installations.
A cone nutcracker and sorting equipment perform up to 70% of all work, provided that a high-quality calibrated dry walnut is used.
When purchasing uncalibrated raw materials for the line, you will need a walnut-in-shell calibrator. There are linear calibrators with flexible settings for any crops, and rotary ones with fixed holes and high productivity.
When purchasing a thick walnut or freshly harvested wet walnut, you will need a walnut breaker. It is installed after the sorting equipment and it cracks everything that has fallen into the undershoot. After the finisher, the cracked walnut is sent back for sorting on a vibrating sieve and aspiration.
You can do without a walnut breaker, but use manual force. To do this, workers need to organize workplaces where they will manually cracking the walnut and remove the kernel.
Workplaces can be organized using any available tables and chairs. Special bulkhead tables have lighting, contrasting top, shell openings and space for kernel containers.
It is recommended to inspect the resulting kernel before packing, as pieces of shell and partitions may come across with it. It is also advisable to remove the damaged kernels, or you can even sort the kernel by color. Such work is carried out at the inspection belt table.
Elevating conveyors are used to automate the movement of raw materials between plants. They ensure a smooth and uninterrupted supply of walnuts from machine to machine and help to maximize line productivity.
The minimum set of equipment for an enterprise with low productivity consists of a cone nutcracker (50 kg / h), a vibrating sieve and an aspiration column.
An industrial line of medium capacity, which will perform all basic functions, consists of a linear calibrator, a cone nutcracker (100 kg / h), a vibrating sieve with an installed aspiration system and a walnut breaker.
Optionally, you can complete a budget line for beginners or a fully automated line for large volumes.