Rice Milling System

Nitat Tangpinijkul
Post-harvest Engineering Research Group
Agricultural Engineering Research Institute
Department of Agriculture

Rice Milling
The processes of converting paddy into rice
Removing the husk from the paddy
Removing all or part of the bran layer

The basic objective of a rice milling

system is to remove the husk and the bran
layers, and produce an edible, white rice
kernel that is sufficiently milled and free of
impurities. Depending on the requirements
of the customer, the rice should have a
minimum of broken kernels.

Factors Affecting Milling Recovery

Paddy quality
Type of machinery, efficiency, system
Operator
Others
milling degree
ambient condition

Milling Recovery = Weight produced milled rice x 100%

Weight processed paddy

Course
Module 4
Lesson 1

:
:
:

Grain Quality
Rice Milling
Introduction to the milling process and its outputs

Good
Equipment

Good Paddy
Rice

If

Then

you have good

quality paddy in a
well-maintained mill
that is operated by a
skilled miller,

the mill will produce

high quality head
rice.

you use poor quality

paddy,

the mill will always

produce poor quality
milled rice, despite
the skill or the miller
or maintenance of
the mill.

the miller is not

skilled,

the use of good

milling equipment
and good quality
paddy does not
guarantee a high
quality product

Skilled
Miller

Course
Module 3
Lesson 1

:
:
:

Grain Quality
Determining the Physical Characteristics of Paddy Rice
The quality characteristics

Quality characteristics of paddy

These characteristics are

determined by the
environmental weather
conditions during
production, crop
production practices, soil
conditions, harvesting,
and post harvest
practices

Course
Module 3
Lesson 1

:
:
:

Grain Quality
Determining the Physical Characteristics of Paddy Rice
The quality characteristics

QUALITY CHARACTERISTIC: MOISTURE CONTENT

Moisture content has a significant

influence on all aspects of paddy
quality. To obtain high yields, it is
essential that paddy be milled at
the proper moisture content.
Paddy is at its optimum milling
potential when its moisture
content is 14%

Course
Module 3
Lesson 1

:
:
:

Grain Quality
Determining the Physical Characteristics of Paddy Rice
The quality characteristics

QUALITY CHARACTERISTIC: IMMATURE

Immature rice kernels are

very slender and chalky and
result in the production of
excessive bran, broken
grains and brewers rice

Course
Module 3
Lesson 1

:
:
:

Grain Quality
Determining the Physical Characteristics of Paddy Rice
The quality characteristics

QUALITY CHARACTERISTIC: VARIETAL PURITY

A mixture of varieties in a sample

of paddy causes difficulties in
milling and usually results in
reduced milling capacity,
excessive breakage, lower milled
rice recovery, and reduced head
rice yields.

Course
Module 3
Lesson 1

:
:
:

Grain Quality
Determining the Physical Characteristics of Paddy Rice
The quality characteristics

QUALITY CHARACTERISTIC: DOCKAGE

Dockage includes chaff,

stones, weed seeds, soil,
rice straw, stalks and other
foreign matter. These
impurities generally come
from the field or from the
drying floor.

Course
Module 3
Lesson 1

:
:
:

Grain Quality
Determining the Physical Characteristics of Paddy Rice
The quality characteristics

QUALITY CHARACTERISTIC: DISCOLORED

Water, insects and heat

exposure can cause paddy to
deteriorate through biochemical
changes in the grain which may
result in the development of offdoors and changes in physical
appearance

Course
Module 3
Lesson 1

:
:
:

Grain Quality
Determining the Physical Characteristics of Paddy Rice
The quality characteristics

QUALITY CHARACTERISTIC: CRACKED

Overexposure of mature paddy

to fluctuating temperature and
moisture conditions leads to
the development of crack in
individual kernels.

OTHERS QUALITY CHARACTERISTIC:

Weight per volume or density, gram/litre
Weight per 100 or 1000 grains
Thai rice variety: 100 grains weight 2.25 - 3.67 g
Color of Husk
Affecting color of parboil rice
Color of Brown rice
Affecting color of parboil rice
Milling recovery and quality of milled rice grade

 Grain Dimension
Grain size and shape (length-width ratio) is a varietal
property. Long slender grains normally have greater
breakage than short, bold grains and consequently have a
lower milled rice recovery
Type of Paddy :
Extra long
Long
Medium
Short
Sub-type of Paddy
Slender
Bold
Round

Length of brown rice

7.5
6.5 < 7.5
5.5 < 6.5
< 5.5
: Length/Width Ratio
3.0
2.0 < 3.0
< 2.0

Thai rice variety:

Length 7.1 - 7.6 mm

Slender 3.1 3.4

 Chalkiness
grain with opaque areas in the endosperm, caused by
the loose packing of the starch and protein particles,
breaks more readily during milling than clear grain,
greatly reducing its market value
controlled by genetic and environment

white center

white belly

white back

Good Quality Paddy

uniformly mature kernels

uniform size and shape (vareital purity)
free of fissures and cracks
free of empty or half filled grains
less chalky, red kernel
free of contaminants such as stones and weed seeds
moisture content ~ 14%
high milling yield variety

Good variety, good crop management

Harvest at optimum period
Drying immediately after harvest to safe level m.c.
Proper drying to prevent cracking
Good aeration during storage to prevent grain deterioration
Prevent birds & rodents during storage

Purity of paddy
Milling Recovery = Weight produced milled rice x 100%
Weight processed paddy
Purity %
100
99
98
97
96
95

Impurity %
0
1
2
3
4
5

Milled rice %
68.00
67.32
66.54
65.96
65.28
64.60

Cracks
Bran

Rice
grain

Embryo

Bran
Embryo

Rice flour
Splinters

Total bran produced

= when whitening
cracked grains

Paddy Quality
Good

Crack

Immatured

Japonica

Paddy

100.0

100.0

100.0

100.0

Husk

23.0

23.0

25.0

17.0

Brown Rice

77.0

77.0

75.0

83.0

Bran

8.0

10.0

10.0

7.5

Milled Rice

69.0

67.0

65.0

75.5

Brewer Rice

1.0

1.5

1.5

0.5

Recovery

68.0

65.5

63.5

75.0

Size of Rice Mill

Small

12 ton/day

earning from bran, broken or money as milling wage

no grading of milled rice

Medium 13-59 ton/day

commercial mill
for domestic market

Large > 60 ton/day

for domestic market and export

Number of rice mill by region, 1993 - 1997

Year

North-

Northern

Eastern

Central

Southern

Plain

Whole
Kingdom

1993

25,213

10,183

5,223

4,400

45,019

1994

24,905

10,104

5,156

4,395

44,560

1995

24,888

10,065

5,129

4,390

44,472

1996

24,887

10,049

5,114

4,386

44,436

1997

28,533

8,779

3,232

2,731

43,275

Source : Factory Control Division, Ministry of Industry

Number of rice mill in Suphanburi province (2004)

Number of village
Number of Rice mill
< 5 ton/day
> 5 < 20 ton/day
> 20 ton/day

962
194
90 (46.4%)
42 (21.6%)
62 (32.0%)

PRICE LIST OF MODERN RICE MILL

RICE ENGINEERING SUPPLY CO., LTD.
(BANGKOK, THAILAND)
For Month January-April 2008

Capacity (Paddy)
Ton/Hour
Ton/Day
2-3
4-5
8-10
18-20

50-80
100-120
200-240
420-500

Price (F.O.B)
(USD)
348,000
624,000
1,050,000
1,824,000

All price exclude installation cost, electric motor, cable, control etc.

The Aim of Rice Milling

To attain the highest
yield of white rice
With the best quality
Remove least amount
of hull and bran
Minimum brokens
Little foreign matter

Rice milling system

0ne step process
Two step process
Multi stage process
In a one step milling process, husk and bran
removal are done in one pass and milled or white rice is
produced directly out of paddy.
In a two step process, removing husk and
removing bran are done separately, and brown rice is
produced as an intermediate product.
In multistage milling, rice will undergo a number of
different processing steps.

Rice Milling Process

Paddy into rice mill

Cleaning

Impurity

Paddy

Husking

Husk

Paddy, Brown rice

Paddy

Paddy Separation
Brown rice

Whitening & Polishing

Bran

Milled rice
Head rice

Grading and Blending

Broken

Paddy Intake
Quality input = quality output
Garbage in = garbage out!
The quality of milled white
rice will be dependant on
the quality of the paddy or
rough rice coming into the
mill as well as the milling
process. Good paddy into
the mill means quality
milled rice output.
Paddy intake chute

Paddy Cleaning
After harvest, foreign matter can be as
high as 5-10%
While most paddy has been
cleaned after harvesting, some
foreign material is still present.
This can be as high as 5-10%.

Rice pre-cleaner

Pre-cleaning of Paddy
Remove foreign material such as sand,
stones, straw, seeds etc. from paddy
Prevent damage to the milling machinery
Prevent clogging which cause the reduction
in capacity and efficiency of rice mill
Remove materials that cause a reduction in
the grade of milled rice

Paddy Precleaner
Sieve: separate large/ small impurities
Aspirator: separate light impurities
De-stoner: separate same size impurities but
heavier
Trieur (Length Grader) : separate impurities
having same width but different in length
Magnet : separate irons

Open double-sieve precleaner

Examples of
perforated sheets
and wire mesh

Closed-type
single-action aspirator
precleaner

Closed-type
double-action aspirator
precleaner

Double-drum type of
Precleaner
(West Germany)

Single-drum type of
Precleaner
(Japan)

Magnetic separator

Brass

Magnet

A, B: Simple permanent magnet

C:
Rotating brass cylinder and
permanent magnet

De-stoner

Paddy in

Paddy

Air stream

Stone

Vibration direction
Stone
rice

Wind direction

De-husking
Underrun disc huller
Rubber roll huller
Centrifugal disc huller

Underrun disc huller

Paddy

Brown rice
Husk

Particulars of the underrunner disc huller:

V = peripheral speed
(recommended 14 m/s);
W = width of coating;
D = stone diameter;
and W/D = 1/6 or 1/7.

Ratio of W/D ~ 1/6 or 1/7

Composition:
Emery grit 14, 16
Silicium carbide grit 16
Peripheral speed ~ 14 m/s

Under-runner disc huller

peripheral speed-curve for
V = 14 m/s.
D = stone diameter = 700
mm (0.7 m);
and V peripheral speed =
14 m/s.
V = x D x n (m/s)
60
n = 60 x V = 60 x 14
xD
3.14 x 0.7
= 380 rpm.

Capacity and power requirement of

underrun disc huller

Diameter
(mm)
750
1000
1250
1400

Capacity
(kg of paddy/hr)
450-600
700-1000
1000-1400
1600-2100

Motor
(hp)
3
3.5
4
5.5

Underrun disc huller

Advantage
Operational simplicity, low running cost
The abrasive covering can be remade at the
site
Disadvantage
Given grain breakage
The abrasions to outer bran layers

Rubber Roll Huller

Rice Huller

Rollers

Dehusking principle of rubber roll huller:

The rubber roll huller consists of two rubber rolls.
Both rolls have the same diameter.
One has a fixed position, the other is adjustable to obtain
the desired clearance between the two rolls.
The rolls rotate in opposite directions.
The adjustable roll speed running about 25% slower than
the fixed one.

Size and speed of the rubber roll

When the rolls are new, their peripheral speed is about 14 m/s
so that a smaller roll runs faster than a larger one.

Diameter

Width

High
speed

Low
speed

(mm)

(Inch)

(mm)

(Inch)

(rpm)

(rpm)

150

64

2.5

1320

900

220

8.5

76

1200

900

250

10

250

10

1000

740

The relation between paddy variety and hulling capacity

The wear for long grain variety is higher than short grain.
The wear of adjustable roll is lower than the fixed one.

Durability of Rubber Rolls

Type
(Inch)

Short grain
(ton)

Long grain
(ton)

10

300

170

240

140

110

60

75

40

35

20

2.5

30

15

Capacity and power requirement for

different rubber roll hullers
Size

Diameter

Width

Capacity (ton/hr)

Motor

(Inch)

(mm)

(mm)

Long
grain

Short
grain

(hp)

100

220

0.9

1.25

2.5

150

220

1.2

1.9

4.0

10

254

254

2.2

3.8

6.0

Rubber Roll Huller

Advantage
Hulling efficiency is higher.
Reduce grain breakage and loss of small
broken.
The silver skin of brown rice is undamaged.
Sieving the husked products is unnecessary.
Disadvantage
The cost of replacing rubber rolls.

Husk Separation
Paddy

Dehusker
Brown rice, Broken, Paddy, Bran, Husk
Brewer
rice

Sieve

Coarse
bran

Husk Aspirator

Husk

Brown rice, Broken,

Paddy

Paddy Separator

Husk Aspirator

Plansifter &
Husk Aspirator

Closed Circuit Husk Aspirator

1
2
3 /

4
5

Rubber roll huller with husk aspirator

Huller with
Husk Aspirator

(BUHLER: DRHC/DRSC)

Paddy Separation
Removal of paddy from brown rice
After husk separation, a mixture of 85-90% brown rice
and 10-15% paddy is fed into the paddy separation
stage. The paddy must be separated before the brown
rice goes to the bran removal stage. The separated
paddy is returned to the husker for dehusking.

Paddy and brown rice have different characteristics

Weight per volume of paddy is less than that of brown rice,

Specific gravity of paddy is lower than that of brown rice,
Dimensions of paddy are longer, wider and thicker,
Coefficient of friction is different.

Types of paddy separators

Compartment (table) type
Tray type
Screen type

(BUHLER: DNTB)

Compartment-type Separator
The main part of this paddy separator is the oscillating compartmentassembly where the actual separation of paddy and brown rice takes place.
The compartment-assembly consists of a number of compartments in one,
two, three, or sometimes four decks.
The number of compartments depends on the capacity of the rice mill,

Paddy, brown rice

high
low

Paddy

Brown rice

Paddy, brown rice

Paddy

Brown rice

High

Paddy

HUSKER

Adjustment
Speed 90 - 120 strokes/min
Slope
Stroke

Lower

Brown rice

WHITENER

Tray type separator

First rubber roll huller

Second rubber roll huller

Whitening Machine
Removes bran layer to produce white rice.
Amount of bran removed (usually 8-12%)

Whitening
Whitening Actions
Abrasive type
High speed / Low
pressure
Griding action
Impact action
Friction type
Low speed / High
pressure
Tearing action
Cutting action

Milled rice & bran

Friction type

Abrasive type

Smooth
surface

Rough
surface

Large

Fine

Whitening Machine

Vertical abrasive whitening cone

Horizontal abrasive whitener
Horizontal friction-type whitener
Bottom-Up Vertical friction-type whitener

Feeding
Air

Vertical Abrasive
Whitening Cone

Abrasive
cone
Wire
mesh

Bran
sweeper

Bran
Rice
Level
adjust

Rubber
brake

Number of Brakes = Cone Diameter - 2

100
Eg. Cone Diameter
Number of Brakes

= 600 mm
= 600/100 2 = 4

Peripheral Speed 13 m/s

Capacity of Cone-type Whitener

(kg of brown rice / hr)
Diameter

Power

1 Cone

2 Cones

3 Cones

mm

hp

Long grain

Short grain

Long grain

Short grain

Long grain

Short grain

500

350

420

570

680

680

800

600

7.5

550

650

890

1100

1050

1250

800

10

750

900

1230

1450

1460

1725

1000

15

1000

1200

1700

2000

1900

2300

1250

20

1350

1600

2200

2600

2600

3000

1500

25

1700

2000

2700

3200

3200

3800

Composition
Whitening Cone No. 1 and No. 2
Emery grit 16
Silicium carbide grit 16
Silicium carbide grit 18

25%
50%
25%

Whitening Cone No. 3

Emery grit 18
Silicium carbide grit 18

25%
75%

Horizontal abrasive whitener

Horizontal abrasive whitener

Abrasive roll
Screw

Counter
Weight

Bran
Aspirator

Resistance pieces

Abrasive grit
#30, 36

Screen

Long
grain

Short
grain

900
450

%
Bran

00

30 45 60

90

Characteristics of
Abrasive Action Milling
(Speed 12 - 13 m/s)

Shaping Action Factors

Condition

Flat Shape Slim shape Round Shape

Peripheral Speed

Low

Medium

High

Roll Grit

Small

Medium

Large

Pressure

High

Medium

Low

Horizontal friction-type whitener

Perforated
sheet Milling
roll

Brown rice

P control

Milled rice

Bran

Aspirator

Screw
Perforated
sheet

Characteristics of
Low-Speed Machine
(Friction-type)

Effect of Ventilation on Low Speed Machine

(Friction-type Whitener)

Bottom-Up Vertical friction-type whitener

(SATAKE)

Polisher
Humidifying Rice Milling Machine
Vertical Polishing Cone Brush type
Vertical Polishing Cone Leather type
Horizontal Polisher Leather type

Humidifying Rice Milling Machine

Nozzle

Bran

Water addition rate 0.3 - 0.4 %

Mold Growth on Rice from Non-Humidifying

and Humidifying Milling

Humifying rice-milling machine is used in the

last step of whitening system

Characteristics of
Humidifying Milling
Machine

Polisher

(BUHLER: DRPE)

Vertical Polishing
Cone
Brush type

Vertical Polishing Cone - Leather type

Horizontal
Polisher

Whitening System
System

Long grain (Indica)

1

Abrasive

Abrasive

Abrasive

Abrasive

Abrasive

Abrasive

Vent Friction

Abrasive

Abrasive

Abrasive

Hu Friction

Abrasive

Abrasive

Abrasive

Vent Friction

Hu Friction

Vent Friction

Hu Friction

Short grain (Japonica)

1

Abrasive Vent Friction Vent Friction

Milling System for Indica-type variety

ABRAS

ABRAS

ABRAS

Abrasive

ABRAS ABRAS

ABRAS

FRICT

Friction

FRICT

Combined System vs
Low Speed System

Combined System
(High + Low speed)

1st Vertical whitening roll

2nd Vertical whitening roll
3rd Hor Humidifying friction
polisher

Grading
Size of brokens according to Thai Rice Standard (1997)

General standard

Japanese standard

A from B : By thickness
A from C : By thickness / length
B from C : By length

A from B :

By length

Bold grain
A from B/C : By thickness / length
B from C : By length
Slender grain
A from B/C : By length
B from C :
By length

Grading of White Rice

After polishing,
white rice
contains:
Head rice
Large brokens
Small brokens

The white rice is

separated using
Sifter
Length grader

Rotary Seiver

Rotary Sifter

White Rice Grading

One double layers sifter
and two trieurs in
parallel.

One double layers sifter

and three trieurs in
series.

Rice Mixing
An efficient rice mill will produce:
50% head rice (whole kernels)
5-15% large broken and
5-15% small broken kernels

Depending on the countrys standards, rice

grades in the market will contain from 5-25%
broken kernels.

Rice Mixing
Small
brokens

Large
brokens

Whole
kernels

Variable speed motors

allow the mill operator to
mix the appropriate
amount of whole kernels
with large and small
brokens.

Rice Weighing
Rice is normally sold in
50 kg sacks which
must be accurately
weighed and labeled.

scales

Bag filler and

weighing

Color Sorter

Conveying System
Scaling and Packaging System
Duct Collecting System

Milling Quality Assessment

Assessment the milling quality of paddy

Sampling / dividing
Measure moisture content
Cleaning sample
Milling test
Grading

Sample divider

Scale

Sieve

Aspirator

Moisture Meter
Resistance type
Capacitance type

Oven for m.c. determination

130oC 1 hr
103oC 72 hr
105oC 5 hr

A, B : Weight per Volume Tester

C : Volume Measuring Cylinder
D : Counting plate

Rubber roll huller

Abrasive-type Whitener

Length Grader, Trieur

Friction-type Whitener

Friction-type Whitener with Length Grader

Procedures for Milling Quality Assessment

Using Abrasive-type Whitener
Weigh clean paddy 250 g
De-husk paddy with the rubber roll husker
Weigh brown rice
Whiten brown rice w the abrasive type whitener for 90 s
Weigh milled rice
Separate broken from milled rice w the trieur for 90 s
Weigh head milled rice

Procedures for Milling Quality Assessment

Using Friction-type Whitener (De-husking method)
Weigh clean paddy 100 g
De-husk paddy with the rubber roll husker
Weigh brown rice
Whiten brown rice w the friction-type whitener for 25 s
Weigh milled rice
Separate broken from milled rice w the length grader for 90 s
Weigh head milled rice

Procedures for Milling Quality Assessment

Using Friction-type Whitener (Un-husking method)
Weigh clean paddy 100 g
Whiten paddy with the friction-type whitener for 30 s
Weigh milled rice
Separate broken from milled rice with the trieur for 90 s
Weigh head milled rice

Brown Rice Recovery =

Wt of Brown Rice x 100 %

Wt of Paddy

Milled Rice Recovery =

Wt of Milled Rice x 100 %

Wt of Paddy

Head Rice Recovery

Wt of Head Rice x 100 %

Wt of Paddy

Milling Degree =

(Wt of WBR Wt of WMR) x 100 %

Wt of WBR

WBR = Weight of whole brown rice 1000 kernels

WMR = Weight of whole milled rice 1000 kernels

Moisture Content =

Wt of Water x 100
Wt of Sample

After Drying Weight = (100 - Initial MC.) x Initial Weight

(100 - Final MC.)

Eg. Paddy 500 t with initial MC 26%

Final MC after drying is 14%
Then After Drying
Weight = (100 - 26) x 50000 = 430,23 t
(100 - 14)

Thank you