Process Design for a Cassava Starch Wet Milling Plant in Anambra State

Cassava starch is a high-value intermediate ingredient used extensively in food, textile, pharmaceutical, and paper industries. Anambra State in South East Nigeria has significant cassava production potential that remains underexploited for starch processing. This study develops a conceptual process design for a cassava starch wet milling plant with a processing capacity of 25 tonnes of fresh cassava roots per day in Onitsha, Anambra State. The process design includes unit operations for root reception, washing, rasping, centrifugal sieving, primary separation, secondary starch table refining, dewatering, flash drying, and packaging. Mass and energy balances were calculated at each unit, and equipment sizing was performed using food engineering design principles. Starch yield was estimated at 22 percent based on raw cassava composition data. Water consumption and effluent generation were quantified, and a wastewater pre-treatment system was included in the design. Capital cost was estimated at 220 million naira for the proposed facility, with an internal rate of return of 24 percent over ten years at 80 percent capacity utilisation. The study draws on cassava processing engineering literature and contributes an engineering feasibility framework for investors and development finance institutions in the South East agro-processing sector. Findings provide technical design parameters for the Anambra State Investment and Industrial Promotion Council. Keywords: cassava starch, process design, wet milling, feasibility, Anambra State