Sunflower is a major agricultural oilseed crop, and the Republic of Kazakhstan has been steadily strengthening its position as a producer of oilseeds. In this study, an oil pressing machine with two processes, including grinding sunflower seeds and pressing the obtained cake to separate the oil, is constructed. The experiment investigated the impact of different grinding degrees (hole diameters of plates of 5 mm, 4 mm, 3 mm, and 2 mm) and screw rotation speeds (ranging from 30 rpm to 250 rpm) on oil pressing efficiency. The study used sunflower seeds with an oil content of 45–47% and moisture of 7–9%. The results showed that increasing the grinding degree and screw rotation speed led to higher oil yield. The optimal condition was a grinding degree of 4 mm and a screw rotation speed of 60 rpm, resulting in the highest oil yield of 15.6 g/s. Additionally, the residual oil content of the seed cake decreased significantly as pressure increased during pressing, particularly with 4 mm grinding. Power consumption increased with higher screw rotation speeds and finer grinding degrees, indicating the influence of grinding components on energy demand. The cake density increased with higher screw rotation speeds and finer grinding degrees, highlighting the impact of grinding mechanisms on cake compactness. Moreover, the temperature of the cake rose with increased screw rotation speed and the presence of grinding sieves. These findings provide valuable insights into optimizing the sunflower oil pressing process, highlighting the importance of selecting appropriate grinding degrees and screw rotation speeds to maximize oil yield and pressing efficiency.

Meat-grinder plates are critical for efficiently processing meat, significantly influencing the grinding process. This study aimed to develop a meat-grinder plate with variable diameter holes and assess its impact on ground meat quality and processing efficiency. Various meat types (beef, horse meat, mutton, chicken, and pork) were processed using both plate designs: a control plate with a constant hole diameter of 12 mm and a developed plate with featured holes increasing in diameter from periphery to center (8 mm–12 mm–16 mm). The results demonstrate that the developed plate significantly improves the WBC of minced meat, with notable increases in beef (58.3% vs. 57.7%), horse meat (61.8% vs. 56.2%), chicken (51.0% vs. 49.1%), and pork (46.1% vs. 43.6%), indicating a more homogeneous particle size distribution. Yield stress, a critical factor influencing the rheological properties of minced meat, also showed substantial improvements, particularly in poultry (18.9% increase) and pork (31.3% increase). The variable hole design produced a higher proportion of intermediate-sized particles, contributing to a more cohesive texture and potentially enhancing the binding properties of processed meat products. Theoretical calculations based on the Hagen–Poiseuille equation and empirical data confirmed that the new plate design increases the grinder’s productivity by 50%, with average throughput rising from 150 kg/h to 225 kg/h. Additionally, the developed plate reduced power consumption by up to 7.3%, particularly in horse meat processing, highlighting its cost effectiveness for industrial applications. These findings suggest that the variable diameter hole plate design offers substantial improvements in ground meat quality and processing efficiency, with potential implications for industrial meat-processing operations.

This article describes the design of a centrifuge for the separation of fat from meat–bone slurry to produce fat-extracted animal feed. The characteristics of the main components of the equipment and the principle of its operation were presented. The productivity of the centrifuge depending on duration and speed of rotation was determined. Data were provided for different drum speeds (1000, 1500, 2000, 2500 rpm) and centrifugation durations (5, 7, 10 and 15 min), with the yield (output) of defatted slurry measured as a percentage. Among the various conditions tested, the maximum yield of slurry was observed when the drum was rotated at 2000 rpm for 5 min, with a yield of 68.97%, while the lowest yield was observed when the drum was rotated at 1000 rpm for 15 min, with a yield of 55%. On the basis of modeling, a physical model including centrifugal separation with simultaneous centrifugal filtration was presented in the form of a system of differential, algebraic, and criterion equations.

The encapsulation of probiotic cultures is a promising method to enhance their survival during the production and storage of fermented dairy products. This study investigates the influence of design and operational parameters of an extrusion encapsulation setup on capsule size, mechanical strength, process productivity, and probiotic viability. The effect of the inner diameter of the injector (0.16–0.82 mm) on capsule diameter and spinneret reliability was quantified. The dependencies of the gel-forming mixture’s viscosity on temperature (20–50 °C) and peristaltic pump rotation speed (0.333–1.333 s⁻¹), as well as their influence on productivity, were established. The mechanical properties of the obtained capsules were evaluated using a custom-built device based on a penetrometer principle, and an apparent stiffness coefficient (K_app) was defined. Probiotic viability remained above 10⁸ CFU/g under all tested conditions. It was shown that the mixture’s temperature decisively influences the perceived hardness of the capsules (via K_app), while their diameter shows only a minor change (maximum difference 0.06 mm, ~2%). Based on a comprehensive data analysis, a rational operating mode is proposed for obtaining capsules with favourable strength and organoleptic characteristics while maintaining high viability. The findings contribute to the systematic engineering of extrusion-based encapsulation processes for probiotic delivery in food applications.