Raw Sugar Research Articles

Crystallization and analysis of beet and cane sugar blends

The work presented here is concerned with the production of sugar from mixed juices that origin from both cane and beet. This is of interest because with the end of the regulation of the European sugar market in 2017 producers aim for higher utilization of their production sites. This can for example be achieved by co-processing of raw cane sugar and beet juice. Despite the abundant body of work concerning the colorants inclusion in either beet or cane sugar manufacturing practically no detailed information on this important parameter is available for mixed juices. The systematic study reported here reveals that colorants from different origin show a mutual suppression of their incorporation into the crystal. This is particularly surprising because these colorants are reported to follow specific incorporation mechanisms on different faces of the growing crystal. Further analysis reveals that the color contribution due to liquid inclusions, hence crystal imperfections, starts to increase only at high cane inclusion levels (80%), while the color effects of co-crystallization dominate and increase systematically with cane levels. Finally a model to forecast the color values of sugars crystallized from mixed juices is formulated.

LANDSAT-BASED DETECTION AND SEVERITY ANALYSIS OF BURNED SUGARCANE PLOTS IN TARLAC, PHILIPPINES USING DIFFERENCED NORMALIZED BURN RATIO (dNBR)

Abstract. The Philippines has a booming sugarcane industry contributing about PHP 70 billion annually to the local economy through raw sugar, molasses and bioethanol production (SRA, 2012). Sugarcane planters adapt different farm practices in cultivating sugarcane, one of which is cane burning to eliminate unwanted plant material and facilitate easier harvest. Information on burned sugarcane extent is significant in yield estimation models to calculate total sugar lost during harvest. Pre-harvest burning can lessen sucrose by 2.7% - 5% of the potential yield (Gomez, et al 2006; Hiranyavasit, 2016). This study employs a method for detecting burn sugarcane area and determining burn severity through Differenced Normalized Burn Ratio (dNBR) using Landsat 8 Images acquired during the late milling season in Tarlac, Philippines. Total burned area was computed per burn severity based on pre-fire and post-fire images. Results show that 75.38% of the total sugarcane fields in Tarlac were burned with post-fire regrowth; 16.61% were recently burned; and only 8.01% were unburned. The monthly dNBR for February to March generated the largest area with low severity burn (1,436 ha) and high severity burn (31.14 ha) due to pre-harvest burning. Post-fire regrowth is highest in April to May when previously burned areas were already replanted with sugarcane. The maximum dNBR of the entire late milling season (February to May) recorded larger extent of areas with high and low post-fire regrowth compared to areas with low, moderate and high burn severity. Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) was used to analyse vegetation dynamics between the burn severity classes. Significant positive correlation, rho = 0.99, was observed between dNBR and dNDVI at 5% level (p = 0.004). An accuracy of 89.03% was calculated for the Landsat-derived NBR validated using actual mill data for crop year 2015-2016.

Distribution of juice heater surface for optimum performance of evaporation process in raw sugar manufacturing

The evaporation process in raw sugar manufacturing turns diluted juice into granulated sugar. It consists of three main components: juice heater, multiple-effect evaporator, and crystallizer. Previous studies are concerned mostly with multiple-effect evaporator with the assumption that sugar juice entering the evaporator is at the saturation temperature. In fact, juice temperature must be raised to the saturation temperature in juice heater using vapor bled from the evaporator. This study investigates a model of the evaporation process with the objective of determining the distribution of juice heater surface that results in the optimum performance. The model takes into account mass and energy balances in the three components of the evaporation process. If the total juice heater surface is fixed, it is shown that there is a unique distribution of juice heater surface when vapor is bled from the first and second effects of the multiple-effect evaporator. However, if vapor is bled from the first, second, and third effects, many surface distributions are possible, and one of which is the optimum distribution that maximizes either the amount of granulated sugar produced from the process or the ratio of the amount of water evaporated from the process to the amount of high-pressure steam required for the process. Increasing the total juice heater surface increases both performance parameters. Results for two specific systems using different quadruple-effect evaporators are shown to demonstrate the application of the proposed model.

Oxidative and inert pyrolysis on-line coupled to gas chromatography with mass spectrometric detection: On the pyrolysis products of tobacco additives.

According to European legislation, tobacco additives may not increase the toxicity or the addictive potency of the product, but there is an ongoing debate on how to reliably characterize and measure such properties. Further, too little is known on pyrolysis patterns of tobacco additives to assume that no additional toxicological risks need to be suspected. An on-line pyrolysis technique was used and coupled to gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC/MS) to identify the pattern of chemical species formed upon thermal decomposition of 19 different tobacco additives like raw cane sugar, licorice or cocoa. To simulate the combustion of a cigarette it was necessary to perform pyrolysis at inert conditions as well as under oxygen supply. All individual additives were pyrolyzed under inert or oxidative conditions at 350, 700 and 1000°C, respectively, and the formation of different toxicants was monitored. We observed the generation of vinyl acrylate, fumaronitrile, methacrylic anhydride, isobutyric anhydride and 3-buten-2-ol exclusively during pyrolysis of tobacco additives. According to the literature, these toxicants so far remained undetectable in tobacco or tobacco smoke. Further, the formation of 20 selected polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) with molecular weights of up to 278Da was monitored during pyrolysis of cocoa in a semi-quantitative approach. It was shown that the adding of cocoa to tobacco had no influence on the relative amounts of the PAHs formed.

Feasibility of Using Digital Image Processing and Colorimetric Measurements to Estimate the Physicochemical Properties of Raw Cane Sugars

Assessment of the physical properties of agricultural and food products has always been of major importance. The purpose of this study was to investigate the possibility of estimating physicochemical properties of raw cane sugars using digital image processing and colorimetric measurements. Various characteristics of raw cane sugars such as ash, sucrose, invert sugar, solution color, pH, starch, dextran, moisture and refractive index of some Iranian and imported raw cane sugar samples were examined. Additionally, the images of samples were captured by a flat scanner, and different morphological characteristics such as area, perimeter, squareness and count number of crystal were determined using MATLAB software. In addition, the CIE color coordinates by a spectroradiometer with wavelength range of 380–780 nm were measured. Results demonstrated that there was a good correlation between certain morphological behaviors and some physicochemical properties of raw cane sugars. For example, some relationships between the area mean and dextran (r = 0.72), perimeter mean and dextran (r = 0.75) and squareness and starch (r = 0.76) were found. Moreover, correlations between certain physicochemical parameters such as ash, sucrose, invert sugar, solution color, dextran, pH and refractive index and some CIE color coordinates values such as L*, a*, b*, C*, h, X, Y, Z, x and y were indicated. Determining the physicochemical properties of raw cane sugars appears feasible using digital image analysis technique.

Nutrition labels to change in the United States

Nutrition labels to change in the United States

English

The objective of this study was to evaluate the growth and gross yield of sugar and ethanol of first-year sugarcane with water-saving irrigation via hose-drawn traveller using a line of sprinklers. The experimental design was randomized blocks, analyzed in a split plot scheme with four replications. The factors evaluated in the plots consisted of five levels water-saving irrigation applied after planting (0, 30, 45, 60 and 75 mm). The subplots were represented by four evaluation periods (90, 170, 250 and 330 days after planting - DAP). The sugar yield and gross alcohol yield were evaluated punctually at the end of the cycle to 330 DAP. In the central lines of the subplots, the morphological characteristics relative to plant height, culm diameter, internodes length, number of sugarcane plants, number of leaves, leaf area, leaf length and leaf width, were evaluated. The gross yields of sugar and alcohol were calculated using the raw sugar value determined by technological analysis of the broth from a sample with 12 culms per experimental unit. Water-saving irrigation provides a positive effect on leaf length, leaf area, plant height and number of sugarcane plants. Water-saving irrigation of 75 mm definitely promotes an increase of 30% in gross sugar and alcohol yield.   Key words: Saccharum officinarum L., hose-drawn traveller, alcohol yield, water deficit.

Ozonation as an effective way to stabilize new kinds of fermentation media used in biotechnological production of liquid fuel additives.

BackgroundIntermediates from processing sugar beets are considered an attractive feedstock for ethanol fermentation due to their high fermentable sugar content. In particular, medium prepared from raw sugar beet juice seems to be suitable for use in fermentation processes, but it is microbiologically unstable and requires sterilization.ResultsThis study investigates the effect of ozone treatment on the activity of microbial cells from Bacillus subtilis,Leuconostoc mesenteroides, Geobacillus stearothermophilus, Candida vini, and Aspergillus brasiliensis in raw sugar beet juice. Raw sugar beet juice contaminated with 105 cfu/mL of the microbial strains was treated with gaseous ozone (ozone concentration in the oxygen stream 0.1 g O3/L O2, flow rate 6 L/h, 10–30 min, 18–20 °C). The number of microflora decreased to 0 cfu/mL after 30 min of ozone treatment in all studied samples.ConclusionsMedium prepared from raw sugar beet juice and sterilized by ozonation is suitable for use in fermentation processes.

Purification of Raw Cane Sugar by Micellar-Enhanced Ultrafiltration Process Using Linear Alkylbenzene Sulphonate

Raw sugars need to be refined again for attainment of superior quality. In recent years, membrane technology has been widely used in food industry, including sugar refining. One way for improving the separation power of membrane processes like ultrafiltration is the use of surfactant as complexing agent that is known as micellar-enhanced ultrafiltration (MEUF) process. In this study, linear alkylbenzene sulphonate was used as an anionic surfactant in MEUF process. In order to study the refining potential of this method, the effect of temperature at three levels (30C, 40C and 50C), transmembrane pressure at levels 2, 3.5 and 5 bar and the surfactant concentration at three levels (0, 1 and 2 CMC) on flux, turbidity, color and ash content of refined juice was investigated by response surface methodology. The results showed that turbidity, color and ash content of permeate decreased about 5.915 NTU, 407 ICUMSA and 0.059%, respectively. The permeate flux decreased with increasing the surfactant concentration, too. Practical Applications One way to improve the ultrafiltration process is using of the surfactant. Effects of temperature, pressure and concentration of surfactant were investigated. High concentrations of surfactant were effective on removal of the impurities. High pressures and temperatures did not succeed in removing of impurities. MEUF process with anionic surfactant was successful in refining raw sugar.

EXAMINING OF PRODUCTION, CONSUMPTION, IMPORTS AND THE EFFECT ON SUGAR SELF-SUFFICIENCY

INTRODUCTION:Sugar is one of the important food commodities after rice in Indonesia. Sugar consumption is getting higher every year. The consumption increase is not proportionate to domestic production. Granulated sugar is a food source of calories which ranks fourth after cereals, animal food and oil and grease, with a market share of 6.7%. Sugar is also one of the main sweetening agents and has been used extensively, both for household cons umption and as raw material for the food industry (Sugiyanto, 2007). Consumers are more and more sugar in line with population growth and industrial growth in the food and soft drinks.The development of the industrial sector will stimulate economic growth in order to offset population growth. At the same time, the growth of the industry to create new jobs, boost gross domestic product and per capita income. On the other hand, the growth of the industry can reduce the volume of imports. National sugar requirement currently reaches 5.7 million tons. The sugar requirement consists of 2.8 million tons of white sugar (GKP) for direct public consumption and 2.9 million tons of refined sugar crystals (GKR) to m eet the needs of the industry. The sugar demand will continue to increase as population growth, the development of food and beverage industry, hotels, restaurants and others (Ministry of Industry of the Republic of Indonesia, 2016). The level of sugar consumption in Indonesia exceeded the level of production, to meet the national sugar stock, then do import. The realization of the production, consumption and imports are presented in the following table providing information regarding opportunities to improve national sugar production as a substitute to sugar imports over the years.Growth of average consumption of the period 2001-2015 amounted to 4, 86% with an average consumption volume of 4,236,814 Tons. On the other hand, production actually only increased by 3.89% with a production rate of 2,261,328 Tons. This phenomenon resulted in increased imports to meet domestic consumption amounted to 16, 64% with the average volume of 2,009,739 Tons. The fact is clear that there is a deficit, or the difference between the needs of domestic consumption with production of sugar.Over the span of the last eight years, consumption of sugar increased by 8.54% with an average volume of 4,952,767. On the other hand, does not follow the consumption of sugar production. That the only production growth of 0.42% with an average of 2,533,869 tons. The deficit amounted to 31.65% or 241,889,816 Tons. The results indicate the existence of a deficit of investment opportunities to increase production capacity of sugar factories. Deficit figure that exceeds the ability of domestic production led to increased imports of sugar in an attempt to meet the needs of domestic consumption. The sugar factory in Indonesia based distribution, 48 factories located on the island of Java and the remaining 15 are outside Java, especially in Sumatra.Most of the sugar factory is old, there's even older than 100 years. Thus, the national sugar factory productivity is very low, until 2016 only 63 pieces of the plant are still in operation. Problems faced at the national self - sufficiency is: (1) The sugar factory which there are mostly old and low productivity, (2) The area for the development of the sugar cane crop has been limited, primarily in Java; and (3) Provision of raw materials supplied mostly by sugar cane plantations sugarcane and sugarcane fields at times transformed to enable to plant more profitable crops (Indonesia Sugar Annual Report, 2016).LITERATURE REVIEW:The type of Sugar in the trade:Based on the type, sugar traded are: (a) Plantation White Sugar (GKP); (b) raw sugar (GKM); and (c) of refined sugar (GKR) (Decree of the Minister of Industry and Trade No. 61/ MPP/Kep./2/2004). Plantation White Sugar is sugar that has been processed and can be directly consumed by households. …

Integrated design of agricultural and industrial processes: A case study of combined sugar and ethanol production

Bioethanol production from molasses has advantages in greenhouse gas emissions because of its energy acquisition from bagasse. However, the improvement of bioethanol productivity is challenging; while each elemental technology option can be greatly improved, the trade‐offs between the production of raw sugar and bioethanol are complex. This issue should be addressed through the optimization of the whole system, including both agricultural and industrial processes. In this study, we constructed a model of combined raw sugar and bioethanol production from sugarcane considering agricultural and industrial technology options. Data were acquired through a detailed investigation of actual sugar mills. Case studies on the redesign of combined raw sugar and bioethanol production demonstrated that the simultaneous implementation of both technology options increases production of food, materials, and energy from plant‐derived renewable resources, thus demonstrating the effectiveness of the interdisciplinary approach. © 2016 American Institute of Chemical Engineers AIChE J, 63: 560–581, 2017

Logistics Aspects Of Transport Modalities On The Exports Of Raw Sugar

This work aims to present the current scenario of the Brazilian raw sugar export logistics, focusing on transportation, pointing out the benefits of intermodal road-rail in the flow of bulk sugar from mills to the Port of Santos. The study analyzes the evolution of modes of transportation and new investments focused on port infrastructure. It is possible to notice throughout the work that most of the investments in the area comes from private business groups seeking partnerships to improve competitiveness for the sector, such as Rumo Logística and America Latina Logística, which holds the largest concession and rail network in the state. The state of São Paulo currently offers transshipment options warehouses located in its territory and can meet the demand of the sugar mills to flow their product. It could be identified that the existence of a logistical planning well done using these two modes (road and rail) can guarantee competitive prices, load security and a transit time that does not compromise the receipt of the goods at the port, which historically suffer from the accumulation of vehicles, and is a great alternative for reducing air pollutants, with the reduction of vehicles circulating on the roads.

Deglet Nour Dates Phoenix dactylifera L.: An Alternative Source to Sugar in Algeria

Sugar is not produced in Algeria. The country spends millions of dollars annually to import sugar. In the present study, we explained extraction of sugar from Deglet Nour, a kind of Algerian date (Phoenix dactylifera L.) which is native to Algeria and contains high quantity of carbohydrates. The sucrose contents in refined sugar extracted from cane, beet and dates raw sugar were compared and suggested that the dates sugar can be substituted to cane and beet sugar using refractometry, polarimetry and UV spectroscopy.

Testing for bubbles in agriculture commodity markets

<p class="Num-DocParagraph">We apply the recent generalized sup augmented Dickey-Fuller (GSADF) test for explosive bubbles (Phillips <em>et al.</em>, 2012) to monthly time-series for food, beverages, agricultural raw material, cereals, dairy, meat, oils and sugar indices and a total of 28 agricultural commodities between 1980-2012. We found price bubbles occurred for 6 out of the 10 indices studied and for 6 out of the 28 commodities within food markets. Results from the tests can help implementing policies aimed at mitigating effects of future price bubbles to targeted food commodity markets that may require special attention.</p>

Testing for bubbles in agriculture commodity markets

<p class="Num-DocParagraph">We apply the recent generalized sup augmented Dickey-Fuller (GSADF) test for explosive bubbles (Phillips <em>et al.</em>, 2012) to monthly time-series for food, beverages, agricultural raw material, cereals, dairy, meat, oils and sugar indices and a total of 28 agricultural commodities between 1980-2012. We found price bubbles occurred for 6 out of the 10 indices studied and for 6 out of the 28 commodities within food markets. Results from the tests can help implementing policies aimed at mitigating effects of future price bubbles to targeted food commodity markets that may require special attention.</p>

Dead end ultra-filtration of sugar beet juice expressed from cold electrically pre-treated slices: Effect of membrane polymer on fouling mechanism and permeate quality

Abstract Purification of raw sugar beet juice expressed at ambient temperature (20 °C) from pretreated sugar beet slices by pulsed electric field (E = 600 V·cm− 1, tPEF = 10 ms, T = 20 °C) was studied on the laboratory scale by dead-end ultrafiltration tests. Polyethersulfone (PES) and Regenerated Cellulose (RC) membranes with the same nominal molecular weight cut-off of 30 kDa were used. Experiments were carried out in unstirred and stirred (at rotation speed of 500 rpm) mode at constant trans-membrane pressure of 2 bar. The effects of the membrane polymer (Polyethersulfone and Regenerate Cellulose) on the filtration flux and the permeate quality were studied. In order to identify the fouling mechanism, the filtration kinetics was modeled using combined fouling models. Results showed that the filtration productivity (filtration flux) and selectivity (rejection ratio of impurities) depended on the membrane polymer. The juice filterability was better with Regenerated Cellulose (RC) membrane while the polyethersulfone (PES) membrane ensured a better retention of impurities (colorants, proteins and colloids), leading to a higher juice purity. Experimental and models data adjustment showed that combined models were preferable to investigate the fouling mechanism for both unstirred and stirred filtration. The desirable sugar purity (95–96%) of filtrate implies the potential application of a novel process (PEF treatment-cold pressing-ultrafiltration) for sugar industrial production. Industrial relevance Pre-treatment by pulsed electric field PEF allowed cold or mild extraction of sucrose from sugar beet roots. The combination of PEF and ultra-filtration allowed high yield sucrose extraction and purification with less energy consumption. Membrane fouling analysis led to better filtration producibility. The obtained data can be useful for optimization of the sucrose production with high yield in industrial extraction processes.

Understanding flocculation properties of soil impurities present in the factory sugarcane supply

Soil impurities in sugarcane supplies affect clarification and filtration unit operations in the raw sugar manufacturing process. Juices expressed from the sugarcane plant grown in certain soils display poor clarification and dewatering behaviours. In this study, the salient features of these soils were determined in order to understand why they influence flocculation and settling of juice particles (flocs). The soils were characterized by X-ray powder diffraction, transmission-, transmission x-ray-, and scanning-electron microscopy, and their solution chemistries determined in electrolytes. In general, clay mineral composition, cation exchange capacity, and particle size contributed towards the poor settling characteristics of the soils. Fine particles (i.e., <200 nm) were found in difficult to clarify soil samples and were identified as nano-clays. The structure-building phenomenon of these clays if present in sugar juice are likely to impact on clarification, hindering the juice particles ability to settle despite changing environmental chemistry.

Ways that sugarcane industry can help reduce carbon emissions in Thailand

This study aims to evaluate the energy indexes and carbon equivalences (CE) occurring in the Thai sugarcane industry so as to find a sustainable way to produce sugar and renewable energy. Data from energy consumed and produced in the cultivation field and end-user productions for the existing operations of the sugarcane industry show a Net Energy Value (NEV) gain of +120,746.4 MJ/ha-y. The positive sign indicates that the renewable energy output is more than the fossil energy input required in the production processes. Following the concept of Carbon-Balanced Model (CBM), however, the present whole-chain operations of the sugarcane industry are found to emit carbon into the atmosphere instead of reducing carbon emissions. For the production of raw sugar and bioethanol, net carbon emissions were found for existing practice equal to +61.6 kg CE/ha-y with a carbon fixation efficiency of 98.1%. About 66% of the emissions were determined to come from the agricultural phase, mostly due to application of chemical fertilizers. Should fossil-based matter used in both agricultural and industrial phases be replaced with renewable materials, the net emission is computed to be −396.0 kg CE/ha-y, resulting in a carbon fixation efficiency of 114.3%. Thus, this practice will help reduce carbon emissions from the sugarcane industry in contrast to existing practice. From cost analysis, the entire industry is found to earn annual profit about 2.6 times of the total costs. It is revealed that more profit would be gained if lower amount of carbon is emitted.

Optimum imbibition for cogeneration in sugar factories

The cogeneration system in sugar factories consists of four main components: the juice extraction unit, the evaporation unit, the steam generation unit, and the turbo-generator. The juice extraction unit converts sugar cane into extracted juice, which is sent to the evaporation unit, and bagasse, which is sent to the steam generation unit. Combustion between bagasse and air in the steam generation unit produces high-pressure steam, which is used to drive the turbo-genenerator. Steam extracted from the turbo-generator is used to evaporate sugar juice in the evaporation unit. Desirable outputs from this cogeneration system are electricity produced from the turbo-generator and raw sugar produced from the evaporation unit. An important parameter that affects both outputs is the amount of imbibition water in the juice extraction unit. This paper attempts to find the optimum imbibition yielding the best combination of electricity and raw sugar that maximizes the profit.

Pilot Demonstration of Ceramic Membrane Ultrafiltration of Sugarcane Juice for Raw Sugar Production

A field demonstration on the ultrafiltration of sugarcane juice for raw sugar production was conducted in a raw sugar mill in Guangxi Province, China. Heated limed sugarcane juice was processed using 0.05 μm ceramic membranes in a pilot plant with a design capacity of 5.5 m3/h. Results indicated that the ceramic membrane modules were satisfactory for sugarcane juice clarification, which yielded 119.13–142.43 L/(m2 h) of average flux under the volumetric concentration factor of 10–12 and produced clarified juice of superior quality with more than 1.2 unit rise in purity, 99.96 % reduction in turbidity, and 10.42 % removal of color. The membrane cleaning period was 10–25 h. Moreover, a high-quality product with high Pol, low color, and low ash content was obtained when the permeate juice was concentrated and crystallized to form raw sugar. However, further studies are necessary to investigate the methods of processing retentate for the recovery of sucrose and handling of wastewater generated during membrane cleaning, as well as the service life of the membrane.