Refining of Raw Cane Sugar

Affination is the gateway to efficient sugar refining. Often underestimated, this step plays a pivotal role in removing molasses coatings from raw sugar crystals, setting the stage for high-purity production. By blending mechanical separation with chemical insight, affination enhances color removal, reduces non-sucrose load, and improves overall yield. 1. Why Affination Matters Raw sugar crystals arrive coated with molasses—a sticky layer rich in colorants, ash, and organic compounds. Affination is designed to: Strip away surface molasses and impurities Improve crystal purity before Melting Reduce the burden on Clarification and Decolorization Enhance final product quality and recovery This early intervention prevents downstream overload and supports consistent, high-grade output. 2. How the Affination Process Works Affination involves a controlled interaction between raw sugar and a saturated sucrose syrup. The syrup softens the molasses layer without dissolving the crystals. The mixt...

This article provides an overview of the adverse role of Dextran and Starch in the sugar production process, including their effects on the process house and measures to control them. Dextran Leuconostoc mesenteroides is a type of lactic acid bacteria that can break down sucrose into dextrose and levulose through a biological process. Dextrose and Levulose are monosaccharide isomers of Glucose and Fructose. Leuconostoc mesenteroides produces an enzyme called dextran sucrase during the break-down which causes the polymerization of dextrose into a polysaccharide called dextran. C12H22O11 => C6H12O6+C6H12O6 => (C6H12O6)n Sucrose => Dextrose + Levulose => Dextran Dextran isn’t a specific molecule but rather a group of long chain polysaccharides which have a varying range of molecular weight from 2000 to 20000. Dextran is formed when many glucoses is attached together at ɑ 1,6 by glycosidiclinkages. It may also have branches at ɑ 1,2 or ɑ 1,4 or ɑ 1,4. Generally, it has more tha...