Sugarcane Juice Clarification Research Articles

One pot two-alkali clarification process to minimize sucrose degradation of clarified sugarcane juice during evaporation

Chemical degradation of sucrose during evaporation is a key production issue for the sugar cane industry. Although targeting higher juice pH using Lime Saccharate (LS) is commonly recommended to reduce sucrose degradation, this study showed reduced sucrose degradation occurs with increasing juice pH at the expense of higher invert sugar degradation and residual Ca2+ which could respectively lead to increase in juice colour and higher scaling propensity. The study also showed that Na+ and K+ ions have minimal effect on sucrose hydrolysis, while Ca2+ and Mg2+ increased the rate of sucrose hydrolysis through reducing juice pH and via complexation with the sucrose molecule. With this knowledge, a novel two-stage clarification method using a hybrid alkaline agent compared to LS was assessed for sucrose degradation and clarification performance. The results showed that LS/Mg(OH)2, LS/Na2CO3, LS/KOH and LS/NaOH showed lower sucrose degradation than the conventional LS method with up to 53% lower residual Ca2+ levels. LS/KOH and LS/NaOH achieved clarification performances comparable to the LS under the tested conditions while, LS/Mg(OH)2 and LS/Na2CO3 would further require further testing to improve clarification performance.

Plant-based hydrocolloids for efficient clarification of cane juices: rheological analysis and solidification studies.

The present study is designed to study the efficiency of plant-based hydrocolloids for the efficient clarification of sugarcane juice and subsequent production of non-centrifugal sugars (NCSs). NCSs are generally produced with lime or other inorganic solids as a clarification agent, often leading to products with a bland taste and dark color. This work is a first of its kind, where plant-based hydrocolloids such as starch, xanthan gum, and guar gum are used for clarification studies. Clarification efficiency was evaluated in terms of separation efficiency, turbidity removal, sucrose content, color transmittance, and rheology studies. Preliminary studies revealed that starch showed a better separation efficiency of 78% compared to other hydrocolloids, and further rheology studies of starch-clarified juice showed a favourable shear-thickening (dilatant, n = 1.382) behaviour, whereas the other two hydrocolloids showed an unfavourable shear-thinning (pseudo plastic, n < 0.9) behaviour. Eventually, starch was found to be a better clarification agent and is proposed as an alternative to lime-based clarification. Solidification studies were performed with starch at various concentrations (0.02-0.04%), pH (6.8-7.2), and temperature (80 °C-100 °C), and it was found that NCSs produced via starch clarification showed superior properties compared with traditional lime-based clarification processes.

Influence of calcium carbonate sludge on cement-stabilized subgrade quality as investigated by means of electrical resistivity measurements

Calcium carbonate [CaCO3] is a key raw material used in the clarification of sugarcane juice for syrup production. The CaCO3 sludge produced during the clarification process is waste that needs to be stored, creating a geoenvironmental problem. On the other hand, it has been found that cement-stabilized subgrade is a suitable alternative for improving the quality of a subgrade course. This study aimed to investigate the influence of calcium carbonate sludge on the quality of the subgrade. The subgrade was composed of a mixture of 10% to 30% CaCO3 sludge, 1% to 3% of original Portland cement (OPC), and 67% to 100% of unqualified crushed rocks by weight. The modified Proctor method was used to compact soil–cement admixture samples, which were then tested for mechanical properties and electrical resistivity. The Wenner electrode array was used to measure electrical resistivity and compare it to the unconfined compressive strength of 16 different types of soil–cement mixtures after 7 days. The results of experiments show that the basic properties of CaCO3 sludge, when mixed with OPC and packed down, can make the best soil–cement mixture. As a result of this study, electrical resistivity was found to be in good correlation with unconfined compressive strength, thus opening up a time-saving and cost-effective way to check the quality of a soil–cement mixture.

Optimisation of Process Parameters for Centrifugal Clarification of Sugarcane Juice for Quality Jaggery

A solid-wall basket-type centrifugal clarifier of 500 l.h-1 capacity having a rotational speed of 1,200 rpm was used for the mechanical clarification of sugarcane juice. The effect of polypropylene filter pore size (5, 10, 15 μm), centrifugation time (5, 10, 15 min), and temperature of juice (60, 70, 80 ºC) on sugarcane juice clarification was studied using Box-Behnken design. Clarification efficiency ranged between 50.8% and 82.5%, whereas optical density (OD) and percent transmittance (%T) varied from 1.95 to 1.05 and 2 to 8, respectively. Optimisation of the process parameters suggested a polypropylene filter pore size of 10 μm, centrifugation time of 15 min, and juice temperature of 80 ºC, contributing to a solution of 82.5% clarification efficiency (ƞ). Jaggery prepared from clarified sugarcane juice appeared brighter in colour (L* value 58.1), and contained less amount of insoluble solids (0.75%) as compared to jaggery prepared from unclarified juice. No significant changes in sucrose and reducing sugar contents in jaggery were observed with clarification.

Chitosan-cellulose nanocomposite: Preparation, characterization, and evaluation as cationic color precipitant in sugar clarification process

The present paper aims to use natural biodegradable polymers of chitosan (CS) and cellulose (CEL) to synthesize green chitosan-cellulose (CS-CEL) nanocomposite as a new clarifying agent. This is the cutting-edge of the sugar industry's clarification process. The CS-CEL nanocomposite showed outstanding results in zeta potential analysis, with a maximum value (+) 57.73 mV, leading to remarkableresults in coloradsorption via electrostatic attraction. It was also observed that CS-CEL has high mechanical stability. When CS and CS-CEL nanocomposite were used in the clarification of sugarcane (MJ), the findings demonstrated an improvement in colorremoval of up to 8.7% using CS and 18.1%using CS-CEL nanocomposite compared to currently phosphotation clarification process. Also, Turbidity decreased using CS-CEL nanocomposite compared to the traditional phosphotation clarification process. Overall, we can conclude that CS-CEL nanocomposite has considerable efficiency in sugarcane juice clarification process as a green biodegradable adsorbent and flocculating material to produce sulfur-free sugar.

Clarification of sugarcane juice: review

Clarification of sugarcane juice: review

Efficient removal of dextran in sugar juice by immobilized α-dextranase from Chaetomium gracile

Abstract Dextran problem restricts the development of the sugar industry. Although the enzymatic treatment based on α-dextranase from Chaetomium gracile (α-dextranase (CG)) has been effective in solving this issue, the lack of immobilization products hinder its industrial applications. This research described a novel and suitable method to immobilize α-dextranase (CG). The purified α-dextranase (CG) was immobilized via cross-linking using modified chitosan as carriers. In addition, this study used a deep eutectic solvent that greatly improved the enzymatic properties of immobilized α-dextranase (CG). α-dextranase (CG) was immobilized by adding deep eutectic solvent (DES-IM-α-dextranase (CG)) showed better temperature tolerance and storage properties than free and ordinary immobilized counterparts. It can eliminate dextran by 59.71% in mixed sugarcane juice and 38.71% in clarified sugarcane juice. The achieved results were considerably better than those obtained using free and other immobilized enzymes. Altogether, these findings confirmed that DES-IM-α-dextranase (CG) displayed great potential in solving the dextran problem.

Preparation, flocculation and application in sugar refining of eco-friendly dextran-polylysine complex flocculant

Polysaccharides have been widely used in many fields. In the field of food water treatment, polysaccharide-based flocculants have attracted extensive attention. Based on the enzymatic preparation of high molecular weight dextran, two safe, sustainable and eco-friendly dextran based high molecular flocculants were developed by introducing flocculating active groups into the molecular chain of dextran through cross-linking (DEPL) and esterification (Dex-PL). The prepared product was characterized by elemental analysis, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, thermogravimetric analysis and field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM). Because amino group is the main active group of flocculation, more amino groups are retained in esterification reaction. In the flocculation experiment of kaolin suspension, the efficiency of the two flocculants is very excellent, both of which are greater than 96%. The results of the study on the flocculation mechanism showed that charge neutralization, adsorption bridging and sweeping flocculation mechanisms occurred in the flocculation process. Dex-PL was applied to the clarification of sugarcane juice in sugar industry. At the dosage of 118 mg/L, the clarification efficiency reached 91.4%. The results of biodegradation experiment showed that the product can be biodegraded by enzymatic hydrolysis. This study provides experience for the development and application of new polysaccharide based flocculants, and provides safe and effective flocculants for sugar refining.

Clarification of Limed Sugarcane Juice by Stainless Steel Membranes and Membrane Fouling Analysis.

The performance of stainless steel membranes with pore sizes of 100 and 20 nm in clarifying limed sugarcane juice was investigated under different operating conditions. An increase in transmembrane pressure (TMP) for the 20 nm membrane from 2 to 5 bar led to an increase in the average flux from 146.6 Lm−2 h−1 to 187.8 Lm−2 h−1 (approximately 9 h). The increase in crossflow velocity from 2 to 5 m/s led to an increase in the average flux from 111.9 Lm−2 h−1 to 158.1 Lm−2 h−1. The increase in temperature from 70 °C to 90 °C caused an increase in the average flux from 132.8 Lm−2 h−1 to 148.6 Lm−2 h−1. Simultaneously, the test produced a high-quality filtered juice with an average of 1.26 units of purity rise. The purity increased with time, and a 99.99% reduction in turbidity and an average 29.3% reduction in colour were observed. In addition, four classic filtration mathematical models and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) analyses suggested that cake formation is the main mechanism for flux decline. Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectrometry and energy-dispersive X-ray (EDX) spectrometry indicated that organic fouling is the main foulant. This study demonstrates the potential of stainless steel membranes as filters for the clarification of raw sugarcane juice.

Effective Adsorption of Colorants from Sugarcane Juice by Bagasse-Based Biochar-Hydroxyapatite Composite.

The clarification of sugarcane juice is a crucial stage in the sugar manufacturing process, as it affects evaporator performance, sugar quality and yield. The emergence of environmentally friendly and efficient adsorption technology has resulted in widespread interest in carbon-based materials. However, their low adsorption capacity and reusability make them unsuitable for processing sugarcane juice. Here, we provide a cost-effective and sustainable method to dope hydroxyapatite (HAP) nanoparticles on porous carbon (BBC) derived from sugarcane bagasse (BBC-HAP). The composite shows excellent adsorption capacity for color extract from sugarcane juice of 313.33 mg/g, far more effective than the commercially available carbon-based adsorbents. Isotherm studies show that the adsorption of BBC-HAP composite to the colorants is a monolayer process. The pseudo-first-order (PFO) and pseudo-second-order (PSO) kinetic models demonstrate that the adsorption process is dominated by chemisorption and supplemented by physical adsorption.

​Okra Plant: A Multi-purpose Underutilized Vegetable Crop: A Review

The plant kingdom has various species that are underutilised. Proper scientific approached help them to utilised for multiple end applications. Okra is one of such underutilized multi-purpose vegetable crop. Green immature okra fruits are consumed as a vegetable worldwide. Okra seed is a good source of oil and protein. Okra seeds are also used as a substitute for coffee. Okra roots are used for clarification of sugarcane juice. It has medicinal value as well as useful in wastewater treatment. Okra is also a potential source of natural fibers suitable for textile, paper and other engineering applications. The present paper reviewed the okra plant, its cultivation and applications in various form such as food, medicine, textile fiber, paper pulp, biomass, etc. for its introduction as a multi-purpose vegetable crop.

Value added products from clarified sugarcane juice

Value added products from clarified sugarcane juice

Clarification of Sugarcane Juice by Ozonation and Anodic Electrooxidation: Effects of Process Variables and Energy Consumption

Most of the white sugar production is based on the clarification of sugarcane juice through sulfitation. In this work, alternative clarification technologies, namely ozonation and the electrochemical advanced oxidation process using the DSA® anode, are compared for the first time. In the first case, the effects of temperature and ozone concentration in the gas bubbled into raw sugarcane juice were investigated; for the electrochemical process, the effects of applied electric potential and temperature were considered. Central composite experimental designs were used to study the effects of these process variables on ICUMSA color removal, remaining sucrose content, rheology of the juice and energy consumption. For ozonation, the highest ICUMSA color removals at the end of 60 min were 75% (55 °C; 22.9 mg O3 L−1), 71.4% (33.7 °C; 14.5 mg O3 L−1), and 57.6% (55 °C; 14.5 mg O3 L−1), with energy consumptions of 532, 442 and 642 kWh m−3 order−1, respectively. In contrast, the highest ICUMSA color removal achieved by anodic electrooxidation was around 35%, at 33.8 °C and 18 V or 40 °C and 28 V, with 199 and 587 kWh m−3 order−1, respectively. In both cases, no losses of sucrose or appreciable variation in juice viscosity were observed. Considering equivalent clarification performances, the electrochemical process was shown to be more energy-efficient. Conversely, given the best performances achieved in each case, the clarification technologies studied did not reveal significant differences regarding energy consumption, sounding promising for industrial application, while further detailed process design and economic evaluation are needed.

Tannin Extract for Sugarcane Juice Clarification

Clarification of sugarcane juice is one of the most important steps in the sugar manufacturing process, considering that an efficient clarification may result in highly beneficial effects on the quality and yield of the final product, crystal or refined sugar. Currently, depending on the industrial plant and intended product, the use of calcium hydroxide, phosphoric acid and sulfur dioxide as auxiliary agents for clarification has been consolidated, the latter being questioned for causing adverse health reactions. In this context, the present study evaluated the performance of the natural black Acacia (Acacia mearnsii) tannin extract as an alternative for the sugarcane juice clarification. The results showed that tannin dosages between 300 and 500 ppm along with liming applied at pH 7.3 and 3 ppm of anionic flocculant provided the best performance, resulting in 32–34% of color removal and 89–93% of turbidity removal. Under these conditions, starch and dextran removal increased, 90 and 98%, as compared to 69% and 96%, obtained with conventional treatment. The performance of the tannin also reduced the calcium hardness of clarified juice by up to 18% compared to the conventional treatment, which in turn may prevent fouling in the subsequent steps.

Impurity in sugarcane juice as mineral content: A prospect for analysis using energy-dispersive X-ray fluorescence (EDXRF) and chemometrics

The juice extracted from sugarcane passes through several clarification stages before either sugar or ethanol production. These stages involve chemical addition to purify and clarify the juice, mainly when it is destined for sugar production. The addition of these chemicals can negatively impact the environment, causing soil and water contaminations, as main effects amidst others. Hence, these chemicals, products, and subproducts formed during the clarification stages, which become mineral impurity on the extracted juice, must be assessed. The key idea is the better control of the industrial production of these commodities – sugar and ethanol. Energy-dispersive X-ray fluorescence (EDXRF) presents itself as a high-analytical-frequency technique, with minimal sample preparation, without adding toxic chemicals in most cases. The results shown here is an initial exploratory study of the ability of partial least squares (PLS) to model EDXRF data for the estimation of Ca, Fe and K in sugarcane juices at different clarification stages. At first glance, this method may guide the proper use of chemical reagents towards the stages of sugarcane juice clarification for Ca (in four stages), Fe, and K (in seven stages) to reduce the environmental impact.

Food-Grade Expression and Characterization of a Dextranase from Chaetomium gracile Suitable for Sugarcane Juice Clarification.

The microbial production of dextranase using cheap carbon sources is beneficial to solve the economic loss caused by the accumulation of dextran in syrup. A food-grade microbial cell factory was constructed by introducing the dextranase encoding gene DEX from Chaetomium gracile to the chromosome of Bacillus subtilis, and the antibiotic resistance marker gene was subsequently deleted via the Cre/loxP strategy. The dual-promoter system with a sequentially arranged constitutive P43 promoter resulted in an 85 % increase in DEX expression. Under the optimal fermentation conditions of 10 g/L maltose, 15 g/L casein, 1 g/L Na2 HPO4 , 1 g/L FeSO4 and 8 g/L NaCl, DEX activity was increased from 2.625 to 64.34 U/mL. Recombinant DEX was purified 5.98-fold with a recovery ratio of 26.67 % and specific activity of 3935.02 U/mg. Enzyme activity was optimal at 55 °C and pH 5.0 and remained 80.34 % and 71.36 % of the initial activity at 55 °C and pH 4.0 after 60 min, respectively. The enzyme possessed high activity in the presence of Co2+ , while Ag+ showed the strongest inhibition ability. The optimal substrate was 20 g/L dextran T-2000. The findings could facilitate the low-cost, large-scale production of food-grade DEX for use in the sugar industry.

Modeling and optimization of sugarcane juice clarification process

Sugarcane juice clarification is an important operation in the production process of sugar industry. At present, the two major production indicators (clear juice color value and gravity purity of the mixed juice) in sugarcane juice clarification process still cannot be measured online, and can only be obtained by offline test. In addition, when production condition changes, the setting and adjustment of the key operational variables are made by experienced workers. The delay caused by the offline test and the randomness of the key operational variables caused by manual adjustment will affect the quality of final product. To address these two issues, we firstly constructed a data-driven model based on the deep kernel extreme learning machine (DK-ELM) to predict the key production indicators for clarification process. The model which combined the kernel method and the multi-layer extreme learning machine (ML-ELM) proved successful in prediction of clear juice color value and gravity purity. Then, we proposed a strategy for optimization of operational variables, avoiding the randomness caused by manual setting. A multi -objective function including the purity and color value was constructed. The niche multi-objective particle swarm optimization (PSO) algorithm was used to solve the multi -objective function under typical working conditions in the production process to get optimal set of key operational variables. The results showed that the niche multi-objective particle swarm optimization (PSO) algorithm can provide optimum production indexes for sugarcane juice clarification.

Sugarcane juice clarification by lanthanum phosphate nanofibril coated ceramic ultrafiltration membrane: PPO removal in absence of lime pre-treatment, fouling and cleaning studies

The present work explores the possibility of employing rare earth phosphates deposited alumina substrates for ceramic membrane applications. Multichannel porous alumina supports are coated with Lanthanum phosphate nanofibrils of thickness 6 µm by sol-gel deposition technique. The performance of lanthanum phosphate coated ultrafiltration (UF) membrane for sugarcane juice clarification was studied by measuring polyphenol oxidase (PPO) enzyme, bacteria removal efficiency and permeate flux decline profile. The PPO enzyme activity was observed to be lower by 70% in permeate along with a less bacterial presence. The analysis of sucrose loss with time is also studied for raw sugarcane juice, clarified and limed sugarcane juice. A hybrid cleaning strategy involving an innovative brushing action on the membrane surface for physical cleaning combined with chemical cleaning was implemented in this study. The fouled membrane was analyzed by FESEM, EDX, and FTIR. Shelf-life study of feed and permeate confirmed that permeate was more stable than the feed. The experimental results conclude that raw sugarcane juice clarification using lanthanum phosphate coated UF membrane was viable with the use of innovative physical cleaning method as proposed in this study.

The clarification of sugarcane juice and the use of CA-11 yeast produces better quality cachaça

Cachaca is the second most consumed alcoholic beverage in Brazil, obtained by distilling wine from fermented sugarcane must, and has an alcohol content of 38 to 48% (v/v) at 20 oC. The quality of the drink is affected by the raw material used, the treatment of the juice, the type of yeast and the distillation process. The aim of this study was to evaluate the performance of two types of yeast (selected and pressed) and the prior physical and chemical treatment of the sugarcane juice on the quality of the cachaca. The experimental design was completely randomised with 9 replications. The primary treatment was represented by the must (obtained from clarified and non-clarified juice) and the secondary treatment by the types of yeast (CA-11 and pressed biological). The microbiological behaviour of the yeast during fermentation was evaluated together with the chemical composition of the wine and cachaca. The use of selected strains and the prior treatment of the juice resulted in better performance of the fermenting yeasts, producing distillates of suitable physical and chemical standards and quality.

Selection of suitable and sustainable clarificants and clarification method for non-centrifugal sugar production using MCE

In production of non-centrifugal sugar (NCS), number of processes are involved viz. extraction of juice, clarification of juice, concentration of juice, molding, packing. Clarification is one of the most important process that eliminates the non-sugars impurities present in the extracted raw sugarcane juice that effects the quality of NCS. The quality and shelf-life of NCS mainly depends upon the type of clarification technique, type of clarifiers used and the efficiency of sugarcane juice clarification. The present work provides insight into a logical process for identifying an effective and sustainable method of clarification to improve the quality of NCS using multi-criteria evaluation (MCE) technique. The selection process is based on 11 criteria covering various sustainability factors viz. resources & environmental effects, techno-economic and process output parameters. Fuzzy analytical hierarchy process (FAHP) integrated with conventional AHP method and TOPSIS are the MCE techniques considered to identify the most appropriate method of clarification among the five alternatives considered. The result showed that clarification with plant mucilage is found to be the most appropriate and sustainable method of clarification to enhance NCS quality and shelf-life. On the other hand, the conventional practice of using inorganic clarifiers as per food standard limit can be used as a secondary option.