PRODUCTION AND UTILIZATION OF FATS AND OILS 19 
duction of sulphonated oil requires both skill and experience. Sul- 
phonated castor oil is used in the dyeing of fabrics to give clearer and 
brighter colors, and as an aid in the finishing of cotton, linen, silk, 
and leather. Castor oil is important also as a lubricant and enters 
into the manufacture of some soaps and imitation leathers. 
SESAME OIL 
Sesame oil, also known as gingili, teel, and benne, is made from 
the seeds of an herbaceous annual, 2 to 4 feet high, of the Sesamum 
genus. Sesame plants have been cultivated in India and elsewhere 
in the East from time immemorial, and are now grown in most 
countries with a tropical or subtropical climate, China and India 
being the largest producers. In the United States sesame seed has 
not been grown for oil because it is necessary to pick by hand the 
seeds as they ripen. Otherwise the pods quickly explode and scatter 
the small seeds over the ground. 
Sesame seeds range in color from almost white to black. The 
so-called white seeds yield the finest oil and the black seeds the poorest. 
The importations of both seed and oil into the United States have 
increased during the last few years. 
The oil may be expressed from the seed by hydraulic, presses or 
expellers. As the seed contains more than 50 per cent of oil, however, 
special experience is necessary to satisfactorily extract the oil and 
produce a press cake of low oil content. 
Sesame oil is one of the important food oils. Both the cold-drawn 
and the refined hot-pressed oil- are used in salads, in cookery, and in 
the manufacture of margarine. The lower grades are employed in 
soap making. The press cake is an excellent cattle food. 
SUNFLOWER-SEED OIL 
Sunflower-seed oil is obtained from the seeds of the large cultivated 
sunflower, which usually contain from 20 to 25 per cent of oil. 
Russia and China are the chief producers of this oil. 
The sunflower seed produced in the United States, which for some 
time has amounted to several million pounds per year, is used chiefly 
in the preparation of poultry feeds. The important sunflower-seed 
producing areas are southeastern Missouri, southern Illinois, and the 
San Joaquin Valley in California. Only small quantities of the oil 
have been expressed in this country. 
In Russia the cold-pressed oil is used for edible purposes and the 
hot-pressed oil is employed chiefly in making soap and varnish. The 
oil is utilized to some extent in the United States for food and 
technical purposes. 
FIXED OIL OF MUSTARD SEED 
Mustard-seed oils are obtained from several varieties of mustard, 
the seeds of which vary in color from nearly white to dark brown 
and usually contain from 25 to 35 per cent of fixed oil. Mustard 
seed is grown in Asia, Europe, and other countries. 
In the grain elevators of the Northwest hundreds of tons of wild 
oil-bearing seeds, chiefly brown mustard and charlock, are separated. 
The seeds are pressed and the oil is sold to soap makers. The 
mustard-seecl oils, which resemble rapeseed oil in many respects, 
