Refining of Raw Cane Sugar

Sugar refining is a multi-stage process that transforms raw sugar juice or raw sugar into high-purity, food-grade crystalline sugar. Each step plays a critical role in removing impurities, reducing color, and improving crystallization. Here's a summary of the major stages involved: 🏗️ Raw Sugar Handling ↓ 🧴 Affination ↓ 💧 Melting ↓ ⚗️ Clarification ↓ 🧲 Filtration ↓ 🎨 Decolorization ↓ 🔥 Evaporation & Liquor Concentration ↓ 🧪 Crystallization ↓ 🌬️ Drying & Cooling ↓ 📦 Screening & Packaging 1. Raw Sugar Handling Before refining begins, raw sugar must be properly received, stored, and prepared. This stage includes: Receiving and Inspection : Raw sugar is delivered via trucks, railcars, or ships and inspected for moisture, color, grain size, and contamination. Sampling protocols ensure representative analysis, and substandard sugar may be rejected or diverted. Storage and Inventory Management : Accepted sugar is stored in silos or warehouses with mo...

Crystallization and pan boiling are critical stages in the sugar refining process, directly influencing the quality, yield, and efficiency of sugar production. This article explores the science, equipment, and best practices behind these operations, with a focus on automation tools and energy efficiency to enhance modern refinery performance. In a typical sugar refinery, fine liquor—also known as clarified and decolorized syrup—is obtained after raw sugar solution undergoes clarification and decolorization processes. These steps remove impurities and colorants, producing a high-purity solution suitable for crystallization. After crystallization, the next step is centrifugation, where the massecuite (crystal-syrup mixture) is spun to separate sugar crystals from the remaining mother liquor. The separated crystals are then dried and cooled before packaging or further processing. 🧪 Crystallization Fundamentals Supersaturation Zones : Crystallization begins when the sugar solution reaches...

Liquid Ring Vacuum Pump is a type of rotary positive displacement pump which functions by means of a spinning rotor/impeller that forms a ring of liquid around its cylindrical casing. The ring fluid is usually water or oil. The liquid ring makes a seal around the impeller which makes the gases or vapors draw into the pump casing through suction. The liquid ring is continuously replenished by circulation. As the gas or vapor is drawn into the pump, it's forced towards the discharge port by the impeller. At this point, the centrifugal force of the liquid ring compresses the gas or vapor, elevating its pressure. Finally, the compressed gas or vapor is discharged from the pump via the discharge port, and directed to a collector or condenser. Working Principle of a liquid ring vacuum pump can be summarized by the following steps As the impeller rotates counterclockwise (as seen from the inlet port), the first blade passes the inlet port and a chamber is formed between the blade and th...

In the sugar industry, vacuum systems are used to create and maintain a low-pressure environment inside a vacuum pan during the sugar boiling process. The vacuum system is an essential part of the sugar refining process, as it allows the sugar to be boiled at a lower temperature than it would under atmospheric pressure, which helps to prevent caramelization and degradation of the sugar. The vacuum system typically consists of vacuum pumps , which are used to remove air, vapor and other gases from the vacuum pan, and a condenser system which is used to remove the water vapor that is produced during the sugar boiling process. The vacuum pump is typically a liquid ring pump or a rotary vane pump, and is capable of creating a vacuum pressure of several hundred mmHg gauge. As the sugar is heated and boiled in the vacuum pan, water vapor is produced, which is removed from the pan by the vacuum pump. The water vapor is then condensed back into a liquid by the condenser system, which typically...

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...

Sugar Final product of Sugar Refinery. Chemically, a form of Disaccharides or Carbohydrates, essentially sucrose. Raw sugar is produced in a raw sugar plant and requires further processing in a refinery. Raw sugar is the raw material for sugar refineries. Some raw sugar mills have refineries attached to them. And there are standalone refineries that purchase raw sugar from raw sugar mills and refine it in their process house. Sucrose β-D- Fructofuranosyl α –D- glucopyranoside is the chemical name of sucrose, which is pure chemical compound of formula C 2 H 22 O 11 , widely known as sugar.  Source: Wikipedia Ash Content A quantitative measurement of Solid residue from incineration in oxygen presence. High ash content in Raw Sugar will require much more filtration and have a negative impact on total sugar refining capability. Ash content in sugar products is determined by incinerating a sample in the presence of oxygen and measuring the solid residue gravimetrically. During the ...