,-,- ,.

lVIANUF'ACTURING.' SECTION.
Dr. R. W. Harman, Chairman.

The following four papers were read consecutively:-

(1) "Improving the Refining Quality of Export Sugar at TUllia
'Mill, Peru," byJ. G. Solano.
(Introduced by Mr. Jarratt.) , .
(2) "Preliminary Report on the Refining Quality of South African
Raw Sugars, 1934-1935 Season," by]'.W. Hayes.
(Introduced by Dr. Micheli.)
(3) "The Refining Quality of Sugar in the Mackay District;
Report CoveririgResearchWorkfor 1933 and 1934 Seasons'! 1'-""

~~Th~. .
(4) " The Refining Quality of Raw Sugars," by Dr. Harman.

A combined discussion on the four papers followed.

Symposium on Refining Quality of Raw Sugar.

Improving the Refining Quality of Export Sugar at Tuman Mill
, Peru.*' '
by
.TORGE A. SOLANO.

Tuman Millis one of the principal sugar centrals in the Republic 0

Peru; It crushes cane from, three plantations: Tuman,·Calupe and Rineonazo
which have a total area under cane of 1,400. fanegadas (nearly 10,500 acres)
Both the mill and the three plantations are the property of the "Soci~da:1
Anonima Negoeiacion Tuman," Messrs. Pardo Barreda being the only shari
holders. .
About 250,000 tons of cane per year are crushed with a productio:rlO,
650,000 quintals] (29,424 tons) of sugar. .
'1.\ The capacity of the crushing plant is 60 tons per hour, "the cruship
plant consisting of a shredder and three mills,that is eleven rolls. Befoi
reaching the shredder, the cane isprepared by revolving knives running at5
rovolutionsper minute, which finely divide it.
The fuel used for, the boilers is exclusively bagasse, of which there
always a surplus. This 8urplusbagasse is stored to provide fuel for the ca~
locomotives and for the .F'owler ploughs of which four sets are in use.
* This paper has been .translatcd from the original Spanish by officers of the Colo,
Sugar Refining Company' Limited. "
t Quintal (Peru) taken as 101.4 lb.
 74L
...,.,~ . ., . " ..... '. "',

... . .... .•. clarification' plallthas.a G:a~~city of 120,OOOlitres(26,400 gailon~)

of juice. - Theevaporationsectionconsists.oftwosets. ofqriadruple effets with
.atotal heatingsurfac~ of 16,000 square feet: . The crystallization section con-
sists of' four vacuum.pans with a total capacity of 80 tons ofmassecuite. The
vacuum is central.
The. control is based on the weight of the cane; the weight and analysis
of the juice, the analysis of the bagasse, the weightl and analysis of the filter
press cake, the. Dieasurementof volume and analysis of the molasses, and the
weight and analysis. of .the, sugar.. The in.terlTIediateproducts are also analysed.
Juice sampling is automatic and continuous, providing samples which are
absolutely representative. of the juice expressed by the .mills. There is. a
laboratory provided with electric power, day and. night, for the oven, electric
hot-plate and polarimeter light. The sucrose balance is carried out with the
greatest care and control reports are made out daily, weekly, fortnightly,
monthly and yearlYialso reports of farms,' plantations and harvesting. Graphs
of yields and costs are also drawn.
The improvement of the refining quality. of raw sugar has been the
subject of very careful investigations during recent years, as a. result of which
many new and varied methods have been introduced in all sugar factories in
the most advanced countries, with a view to improving the efficiency and control
of clarification and sugar boiling. Thus. the electrical control and automatic
regulation of pH •andfhe control of sugar boiling, whether done in' ordinary
pans or pans fitted with stirrers, is now looked upon by the sugar industry as
an established fact. This constitutes a most-remarkable effort and very satis-
factory progress has been made towards the attainment of uniform crystals
and overcoming the difficulties due to high viscosity of massecuitesboiled to
a high concentration. With stirred pans, the difficulty of obtaining a good
uniform mixture has disappeared and the most; complete exhaustion of the
molasses has been made .possible. •
Owing to the critical position of thesugar industry-and the low prices
and restriction of markets prevailing, we have been unable to investigate these
modern control methods, because,in Peru, the sugar industry has been fighting
the crisis foTthe last ten years without anYPl'otection from the State,t which is
contrary to the position obtaining in most of the sugar producing countries.
With that fadtin mind, let us now review what.has been done during the past
few years at Tuman Mill towards improving the sugar recovery and also the
quality. of the sugar produced.
I. Cleanliness.
This subject must be referred to: it is always recommended, but in very
few cases is it constantly attended to in all its details. We take special care to
disinfect periodically the cush-cush and other parts of the mill susceptible to
:/: Six months ago (October 1934), the Government started to introduce legislation
protecting the sugar industry in Peru.
bacterial action, alsoall mate~ial in the factory is maintained in a scrupulously
clean and sterile condition; the slightest fermentation in the material in process
or in the waste products -is never allowed, nor are bacteria permitted to grow
in drains or pipes. The employees are trained to report on the need for and
to carry out any extra disinfection which may be necessary whenever the
routine disinfection. has not been sufficient.
WEI~H 8Et-:M FlODR

.t"w",. BoO:O." .. b~ ~ "" o~= - e:~.t:,/=IV="L.=

• JUICE. SCALE. .' I
L.="=YI"=:' '=~ ~'
..=.;::;ur:::.
~ HANDWHEEL

I( CAPACITY. \·5 METRIC TONS) :

INDICATOR 1< GUIDE

JUICE. WEIGH TA~I<.. I-

l' I 4D LITRES ADJUSTABLE. OVERFLOW
DiSCHARGING POSrrlON I • I(MAlUMUM)
I MJ{i.fO LITRE.S (MINIMUM)
I
I

·----)
SLACK THREIo.D
I

j
t //
OVERFLOW BACK TO
liME MIXERS

- /

"'illK - OF - LiM~ DISCHARGE.

- " . : ' :

- :::J - /' /' ----- -

- = f .
h (
- JUICE. RECE.IVING TANK
16'-0' x 4'-9' x 4',0" DEEP. (
?
FIG. 1.

II. Optimum Clarification of Juices.

in order to obtain clear and brilliant clarified juice with the mimmum
settling time, it is essential to determine the most appropriate treatment for
each "type of juice"*. Fortunately so far no juices' have been obtained with
a deficiency in the relation of phosphoric acid to gums, which on-other occasions
* According to the composition and reaction of the soil, the .careful attention in
cultivation, manuring, cutting season and its .peeuliarttiea, the degree of maturity of the
cane crushed, 'the presen<;e or absence ·of considerable proportions of rotten or borer-infested
cane and lastly the cane variety (and this is the cause of the greatest vairiation ), juices of
different quality are obtained which in the process require different treatments and, especially
in our case, a determined pH for its optimum clarification. With the object of indicating
these differences, we have used the words" type of juice."
 caused.serious difficl'l..Lt.iElS. . " Our juices have been Well suited
treatment with milk of lime, .and the only difficulty we experience
is that of determining the optimum pH for each "type of juice." To this
problem we have given and, continue to give most careful attention, and have
succeeded in controlling it in a rapid and sure way by methodical and frequent
sampling of raw juice and using the analyses of these samples for the co~rrection
of the pH. This continuous determination has been made possible, by means
of an automatic liming device fitted to the Maxwell-Boulogne juice scales in
eombination with a limed juice sampler, all of which are fully described in the
International Sugar Journal (1933, pp. 218 to 219, and 1934, pp. 107, 108).

The automatic liming device, constructed by the engineer, Mr. Burns

Campbell, consists essentially of a small round tank, the maximum capacity of
which is 50 Iitres (about 11 gallons) and which can readily be reduced to 10
Iitres by means of a pipe inside the tank which acts as an overflow. ' This pipe is
moved vertically by means of a small hand-wheel and a screw so that the height
of the' overflow can be decreased Or increased, thus lowering or raising the level
of lime contained. Milk of lime is fed to this small tank from the mixing tanks
by means of a small centrifugal, pump which works continuously. When the'
tank has been filled to the level assigned for the overflow in accordance with
the last test of the limed juice,all the subsequent milk of lime goes down the
overflow and returns to the' pump. This continuous circulation is essential in
order to prevent the lime from settling and obstructing the pipe line. The
discharge from the small liming tank is at the bottom and is a rock alum plug
valve fitting into a two-inch diameter hole and connected by a vertical spindle
to one end of a horizontal lever. This lever swings about its centre, raising or
lowering the valve spindle every time that the other end is moved downwards
,or upwards due to the dropping or returning to normal position of the juice
scale tank. The accompanying sketch (Fig. 1) illustrates the foregoing
description. '
When the juice scales tank has received 1,500 kgm. of juice, it drops
about three inches, thereby opening the discharge .valve in. the bottom, through
which the contents escape in about 15 to 20 seconq.s; at the end of this time, the
tank automatically returns to its former position shutting, the discharge valve
andopening the feed valve. Thus, when the scales tank drops, it actuates down-
ward one end of the horizontal lever, the other end of which operates the spindle
of the valve in the small lime tank. By swinging about its centre, this lever
lifts the other end and with it the spindle and the valve itself, leaving the
discharge hole open. In this way, coinciding with the discharge of 1,500 kgm.
of juice, a known and specially determined volume of milk of lime varying
between 5 and 10 kgm. is automatically added to it. The' pH value of the
juice and the observation of the clarification determine the volume of milk of
lime to be added.
 In order to .• use this as a control test, .<1 ... limed- juicc$ampler.was
constructed, which provides in . a .short time a. representative sample .of .which
the pH. value maybe quickly and accurately determined, so that the quantity
of milk of lime can be regulated with a .minimum time lag. The description of

"CAMPBELL"
AUTOMAIIC. LIMER STEAM LINE.
=~

REC.EIVING TANK
FOR
MIXTURE: OF JUICE. AND MILK-OF-LIME.

rt:
OJ

n
--J
0-

z
~
'Ct:
<0

TO HEAfE.RS

JUICE. HEATE:RPUMP
FIG;: 2.

this sampler is as follows :-From. the large pipe, through which the limed juice
is pumped to the heaters, a half inch branch pipe feeds a small sampler tank
with a. capacity of 150 kgm .. Thefiow is. restricted •to deliver .only. 10 kgm .•.
per minute. The reason for taking this quantity is as follows: When crushing.
at 60 tons per hour and obtaining lOOper cent; of diluted juice, there .will be
60,000 kgm. of juice per hour or 1,000 kgm.per minute. Then assuming
a satisfactory sample will he formed by Lper cent. of. the total quantity
juice, it is necessary to collect 10 kgm. per minute. As the capacity of
 , .- .;.'.--"

represent&tivesample
VVH,H"'LH" corre~p6ndingadditioll'6f
above description;

To prevent-the juice from splashing due to the action of the pump and
the reduced size of the pipe which resembles an injector, a small copper basket
is attached to the end of the pipe and this, acting as abaffie, causes the juice
to fall into the sampling tank jn the, form of a shower" In order that the pH
test of the limed juice sample maybe made rapidly, the small tank is provided
with a copper coil, through which steam circulates as>soon as juice starts to
flow in,· so that. when, the tanlt is fillEid"the' juice is boiling and the albuminous
matter coagulated. This allows a rapid filtration for the pH test. From tthe
time 'of installing this arrangeinent, the record of pH determinations shows .a
uniformity not obtainable previously.
Another condition for' ready clarification of juices is to reduce their
density as much as possible. We have proved that juices of high density, in
which settling of impurities was very slow, have been clarified well and more
rapidly on' suitable dilution. In factory practice, that dilution is obtained by
increasing the amount of imbibition water in crushing, which also means an
improvement in the extraction. This increase in imbibition water,however,
must be fixed at each mill and isIimited by the capacity of the boiler house,
or, more exactly, by the heating .surfaceof the evaporators. Moreover, this
extra dilution of the juice increases, its volume and this means, for an equal
defecation capacity, a shorter settling time or a reduction in the crushing rate.

We have verified that, in most eases, the benefit from increasedsettling

rate-has exceeded the effect of increased volume,Le., clarification has been better
even with a shorter Settling time,provided that this is not less than 30 minutes,
which is considered a minimum. In the very few cases,when dilution (with
corresponding. increase in' volume) .has not suffieiently: increased the rate of
settling, we have very slightly reduced the crushing rate.

III. Careful Control oflVIaterial in Process.

(1) Stopping the high liming of cachaza, which Was formerly practised
to aid filtration. The present aim is to maintain this at 7·2 to 7·4 pH which is
nearly always obtained without any further. addition of lime' other than that
applied to the .raw juice. High liiningullnecessarily darkened the juice, as
filtration is .now being. performed satisfactorily with only a slightly alkaline
eaehaza.
(2) Returning to the limed juice .of:
(a) All filtered juice fromthefilter-press station,
(b) All washings and incrustations from the syrup tanks and all
syrups ,. which are considered by the supervisor to be unsatis-
factory.
 (3)'I'he . evaporation station takes only· clarified juices which, before
passing into the effetsupply tank, pass through a copper screen of very fine
mesh to' separate particles of fine bagasse which sometimes remain in suspension
"indefinitely, or are removed from the clarifiers due to .earelessness,
(4) An endeavour is made to carry out the evaporation in the shortest
possible time and at the lowest possible temperature, avoiding high concentra-
tions which increase viscosity and hinder efficient clarification of the syrup.

,~..
"z:
~
:E
iij

~
,e
I

§
;1

~
~ING
Oi
~ 50DASOLUTION
AND WATER FOR MOLASSES.

'"c
'"
.~
6

FIG. 3.

IV. Automatic and Continuous Neutralization of the Molasses with Soda

Ash (Sodium Carbonate).
This is achieved by using a simple arrangement. described as follows :__
From an iron cylinder of about 500 litres capacity one of the ends is removed
so as to form a small open tank whichis provided with a one inch overflow pipe
two inches from the top. This is installed on the fugal floor in such a position
that the stream of molasses leaving the fugals can be watched while the soda
ash is added in the tank with the formation there, as we shall see later, of an
alkaline solution. The overflow from this cylinder leads to an iron funnel in
which a small stream of hot water also falls. The funnel terminates in a long,
curved stem which delivers the solution right into the centre of the stream
of molasses.
From the steam pipe to the fugals, a half-inch or smaller diameter
branch pipe is taken,· having a U-shaped bend, as low as possible in order to
collect condensed vapour, and leading into the cylinder. This steam lead is
provided ~ith~'>smallvalv!3~ttheinlet;itthus~ctsasatnipforthe.fugals
steam pipe. It is protected by a small round iron plate' at the bottom of the
cylinder. The accompanying sketch (Fig. 3) illustrates the above description.
At the start, hot water is added to the cylinder almost up to the
overflow and the steam valve is very slightly opened so as to produce a gentle
bubbling; then the soda ash is-added and this dissolves in the hot water and
steam which pass into the cylinder and keep the solution well stirred. When
the solid is completely dissolved and the cylinder filled to the overflow, the '
entrance of condensed steam is regulated in such a way that,by discharging
through the overflow an equal volume of solution, it maintains a continuous
feed of soda solution into the molasses' stream. As this 'Iatter drops into a
sieve and falls in the form of drops, into the small pump feed tank, it is thus
further aided to mix thoroughly. In addition to the falling through the sieve,
which disperses the thick stream, and the shower-like fall, before the stream
of concentrated soda solution leaving the cylinder comes into contact with the
molasses, it has been diluted in the funnel and pipe line by a small stream of
hot water from a half inch diameter pipe. This increases the volume of solution
and allows a more intimate mixing than if the concentrated soda solution were
added to the molasses tanks,after dilution of the molasses for the pan, as was
previously done.
This different proportion of volumes has not been obtained by a greater
expenditure of soda solution, but because this solution is now added to the
original syrup, immediately on its leaving the fugal, without dilution and
before it is added, in the large tanks of the pan station.vto the diluted syrup
already there. Thus the water (which formerly served merely to dilute the
original thick syrup to 70-75° brix) now is employed first in diluting the soda
solution, and then the dilution water and soda-ash solution together dilute and
neutralize the molasses.
The arrangement for introducing hot water into the cylinder by means
of a steam pipe is due to the fact that in this way it is easier to regulate a small
feed without the pipe choking, as occurred when we tried to feed the tank
from a water pipe.
To sh~w the advantages obtained, we will now describe the former
method of adding soda ash to syrups: It was prepared in a small tank inter-
mittently as required, and poured by means of a dipper into the molasses
tank when the latter was nearly empty so that it might mix as the molasses
ran in and filled the tank. Inconveniences were :-(1) The intermittent pre-
paration at any hour of the day. or night aceording .as the solution in the
'tank was used up, with the necessity of keeping some 40 kgm. of powdered
soda-ash in the molasses section, which caused losses and waste. (2) The
supersaturated solution readily precipitated as 'the water cooled and when the
workman left off stirring it whilst attending 'to the skimming of the molasses
or washing of the tanks. This precipitation gave rise to weak solutions and
loss of time when it was necessary to use hot water to dissolve the layer of
 748

carbonate deposited on theoottolli ofthetan~. . The 16ss.of trme liindered th.e

skimming... (3) The mixture of 40r5gallonsof soda solution with 2,000
gallons of molasses in each tank was very difficult, when carried out in this way,
owing to the great viscosityof the material and the small volume of· the solution
compared with the enormous volume of molasses-the proportion was 1 : 400.
(4) The additional mixing with a large wooden stirrer,which was supposed
to be done, was generally omitted by the workman.vwho found it troublesome
on account of the effort required and the splashing of molasses on the floor,
which he had to wash up afterwards. (5) Very often the workman, through
forgetfulness or· carelessness, also omitted to add the soda solution to one or
more tanks of molasses during the day. And now for the more obvious
advantages of the new method :-(1) It only takes the mill foreman's time for
five minutes four times a day to pour 6 kgm.ofsoda lime into the cylinder.
.(2) The solution of the salt, the supply of solution to the molasses and the
dilution of the latter are automatic and simultaneous. (3) The mixture. of
soda solution with the molasses is not only automatic but also rational and
complete, being finished at the moment when the syrup is caught up by the
pump to raise it to the large tanks of the pan station. The neutralization is
effective and uniform. The results have been quitesatisfactory for two years'
work. We have obtained perfect uniformity in the neutralization, as ascer-
tained by frequent analyses; less viscosity; avoidance of waste and loss of time
by the workman whose duty it is to skim the syrups; greaterefflcieney of the
skimming and avery noticeable economy of soda-ash, amounting to 5 to 8 kgm.
~~ .

V. Crystallization and Boiling.

l"?j,<:
We have succeeded in eliminating. from the materials which enter the
pan to form and develop the crystal (syrup and molasses) the causes of excessive
viscosity, which has always been the enemy of crystallization and of the forma-
tion of a uniform and sparkling crystal; we have also seen the way to prevent
the production. of syrups. and molasses of. dark colour and containing impurities
which cause dark crystals.' It only remainsfor lis to see what we havedone to
make use of these materials and produce an export sugar which shall be sought
after or at least accepted for refinery purposes.

In the first place wehave brought pres~ure to bear on the sugar-boilers,

to make them work as carefully as possible so as to eliminate uneven grain
and badly drying massecuites, 'I'he sugar boiler who fails. to produce masse-
cuites of the type prescribed by the technical department is dealt with. In the
second place, we have regulated our boiling system in accordance with the
type of sugar required. Thus, we use atwomassecuite method when we make
export sugar for countries where sugar polanising over 96·9 is burdened with
a prohibitive duty,and when the syrup purities are high, and the three masse-
euite method when we make sugar of high polarisation for-local consumption,
or export sugar for countries which pay a premium fOl'sugarpolal'ising over
96 and up to 97·9 and when syrup purities are lew.
 that, .if we use a,
only 96·0 to 96·5 polarisation, we have to
very small grain in the massecuite to obtain such a low polarisation.
of grain is. too soft for satisfactory storage. over. any lengthy period
possibility which is more than ever necessary to provide against at the
day,owiilgto over-production) , and although it should be soug-ht by
re:tin.erJ.eson account of the ease with whiehIt is dissolved, it .is actually refused
refiners. Making export sugar of over 96·5 andiup t<l;97.9, it.is easier to
uniformity of size in the crystals from the first and second massecuites
the three massecuite system. (2) When the purity of. the syrup is very high,
the inconvenience of over-fine grain in the first boiling in the three massecuite
method, and the danger of exceeding the polarisation of 96·9 (when sugar is
made for countries which penalise heavily a higher polarisation) become
For. this reason the system of two. boilings was adopted,' for. export
sugar of 96·0 to 96·5, this permitting the lowering of the purity of the first
···UV.LHL.L~ sufficiently for a good yield of uniform crystals'of low polarisation when
.:• . .

the cane is of high purity. (3) When the purity of the syrup is low, it is
generally due to over-ripe or immature cane, both ofwh~chgive juice of high
viscosity. As we know, this excess over the normal often makes itself felt with
greater intensity when handling concentrated materials, or, it may be, mixed
boilings; so, to facilitate this work and obtain higher yields, the three massecuite
method is employed. .There is no necess~ty, in this case, to. make small grain,
since there is no danger. of. getting. high polarisations on' account of the low
purity of the syrup.
Apparently, regarding the problem from the point of view of themqst
rational exhaustion of the materials used, we ought to use the three massecuite
method when the cane isyielding richer juice. To. reconoileflre-two views, We
do. our best to work in, thisway whenever we . have to . produce . sugar of high
polarisation for local' consumption, in which case we make the crystals oLthe
first boiling. the required size, which is always. rather 'Iarger than that. of the'
export sugar,whilst its polarisation ranges from 99·0 to 99·5. Thus the first
boiling gives sugar for local consumptionand the second, sugar for export.
As may be seen, urgent economic reasons, together with our objective of
providing in the most effect~ve way for the various markets.veompel us to adopt
mainly the older of the two systems, but wehavemanagedto reduce its disad-
vantages to a minimum, in the following manner :-,-
(1) By not boiling second massecuites of very low purity, so. that the
sugar derived from them, which serves as seedfor the first massecuite, does not
hinder refining. Thiserystal polarises 91 to 92° and has a clear bright colour,
(2) We mix the abovementioned second sugar with syrup of high purity
to form the magma which serves as seed, instead of making this mixture with
molasses.
 .As for the' exhaustion of the final molasses, and cthe faetory.irecovery,
they have not suffered through the relatively high purity of the second boiling,
because, since the lower viscosity .of 'the second massecuite facilitated the
fugalling, the tonnage of molasses produced per skip has diminished, and with
it the total sugar lost in molasses. It is evident that the lower the purity of the
second massecuite, for given conditions of clarity and viscosity in the materials
used in boiling it, the greater the exhaustion of the final molasses will be. But
there is an economic limit to this exhaustion for each mill, depending on its
ability to eliminate impurity and viscosity in' juices, syrups and molasses,from
its defecation system, and on the class of sugar it is producing, it being not
possible to go very far in the exhaustion of the second boiling when experience
has shown that this work is wasted in producing massecuites of high viscosity
and poor drying qualities, yielding a dull crystal, loaded with molasses, which
will require refugallingto brighten it and make it fit for seed. This double
purging increases expense and returns to the molasses tank part of the molasses
which should have been eliminated at the first purging, but which remained
clinging to the crystal. This molasses carries to the molasses tanks much gum,
thus increasing the normal viscosity of the molasses. Thus it is that any excess
over the minimum limit, which each factory may fix, in accordance with its
peculiar conditions, is translated into a concentration of viscosity which soon
leads to the loss of more than it had been hoped to gain by Obtaining a molasses
of one or two degrees lower apparent purity.
The exhaustion of the final molasses must be sought, not so much by
forcing the pan work, but by systems of clarification for juices, syrups and
molasses as thorough and perfect as possible, and in a rational system of
cooling in crystallizers of high efficiency, such as the W~rkspoor.
In conclusion, I shall mention a matter which has been the subject of
constant observation and a great variety of experiments in the Tuman Mill
during the last ten years; the trea,trnent applied to suqo»: of the second boiling.
Processes arranged in order of the period at which they were tried: (1)
The second sugar, of polarisation 80 to 85, dark coloured and of very fine grain
(derived from masseeuites of 55 per cent. purity, which were very viscous
and difficult to purge), was mixed with molasses of 54 per cent, purity, forming
a magma which served as foundation for first massecuites. The bad results
of this process are obvious as soon as it is mentioned. The export sugar
produced was of bad quality.
(2) The same, but the mixture to form magma was made with syrup.
'I'his process was a step in 'the right direction, but the original error of
producing very fine grain of very low polarisation, loaded with molasses and
very dark, was continued.
(3) The purity of the second strike was raised to 60 percent. and
resultant sugar, mixed with molasses of 52 to 54 per cent. purity, formed a
magma which was mixed in the proportion of 1 : 10 with the ffrst strike in the
crystallizers. Drawbacks were :-.,.-Grain not uniform; at times difficult to fugal
 PER
100
CAllE
12.2

11.8

,'-
. .- .' "

ESTIMATED YIELD OF 96° POLARISATION SUGAR PER 100 CANE ••• - - • •

ACTUAL YIELD OF 96° POLARISATION SUGAR PER 100 CANE ;

8.
r- co
'"
...'"
N
... RI' -0
P. N

...~ .~
N
...'" N
'" ...'" 1<"\
~ ...'" ...'"'" ov

FIG. 4.-Comparison between the curves of estimated yield and actual yield at the Tuman
Mill, from 1926 to 1.934, inclusive.

(4) Remelting the second sugar in hot water and clarified juice, and
mixing this liquid with the raw juice. This avoided the mixing of crystals of
different sizes, but had great drawbacks :-(i.) It. produced a drop in the yield
through inversion of sucrose and enrichment of juices and press-cake; (ii.) it
involved, a greater expenditure of fuel since, besides the continued omission
of the seeding, steam was used to dissolve the crystal and then to evaporate the
water used in dissolving it. The volume of the juice and likewise its density
increased and this necessarily caused inferior clarification. In spite .of this,
we continued to use it from 1928 till 1931, some four years, which enabled us
to draw curves showing itsinfluenee in lowering the mill's yield of 96 pol. sugar
during this period. These curves are shown in Fig. 4.
(5) ThQ second sugar, mixed with liquor to a magma, was incorporated,
- as produced, in the first massecuites which were boiling at the time, in the
proportion of 1 : 10. This was just a variant. of the third method described
above,with the .advantages that the 'magma was made wi~h syrup, that the
mixture was made more thoroughly in the :pan than in the crystallizers and
 '... ·C.,:-., , .'. _. ...'

that,attheflnisl1ofboiling. the size 'of the crystalwasslifficientlyuniform,

since the introduction of small grain had less effect when it had had. time
grow somewhat. There was still no seeding. This process was only triedfot·
.a month.
(6) This same magma, in place of being mixed with first massecuites
was drawn in large quantities into a pan for use as seed for first.massecuite,
with the sole object of getting rid of it as quickly as possible in the production
of a few skips during the week. The irregularity of grain was accentuated,
not only in the individual skips, but also in the shipments corresponding to the
sugars produced from these skips and there was still no seeding (i.e., as a
general practice. T1\) . This trial lasted a month.
(7) And last, we reverted to the second method or very near to it;
second sugar mixed with syrup forms a magma which is employed asfouudation
for all first masseeuites. But this reversion to the second method, taken as
whole, involves a radical difference in the details which makes it a success.
'This differen.ce will be explained in the full description which follows:-
Only syrup is grained in the pan to form the foundation for the second
masseeuite, and, soon after the crystal has attained a suitable size, and the
pan has been filled to one-fifth its capacity by drinks of syrup, the pan is filled
up with molasses, thus obtaining a. massecuite consisting of 20 per cent.
syrup and 80 per cent. molasses, .and of purity '60 to 61, more or less, and a
grain which is small but not very fine. This massecuite is left in crystallizers'
for 60 to 80 hours, more or less, always taking care to lower the temperature to
45 to 40°0. to complete the exhaustion of the D;lOla~ses. The drying of these"
masseeuites is very easy and quick, giving a final molasses for the distillery of
37 to 38' purity and. a sugar of small uniform clear grain of a bright golden
yellow colour and 91 to~20 polarisation. This, mixed with syrup of a high"
purity, to a magma, forms the foundation of the first massecuite. This magma
is run into crystallizers which are directly connectedto the vacuum pans. Each
time that seed is drawn off and one of these crystallizers is emptied (and this:
is very important) it is washed and disinfected. Wethusobtain for our export
'sugar a seed or nucleus which is perfectly uniform, clean, pure, ,clear and,:
bright and of a purity never inferior to that of the material to be used for
building it up.
The conclusion, drawn from such 'complete experimentation is that, by
. the last process described, wehayeobtained the best results as to quality.
and quantity of sugar, economy of fuel, speed of work and increase in sucrose'
recovery, as is shown by the curves for sugar of 96 0 recovered during the years
'32, '33 and '34, in which the process has come into use in the Tuman Mill,

Summary.
Mention is made of the special care taken to maintain cleanliness
ioprev~ntbacterial action inallmaterial in process.
 'g'IVeIlcOI! an.iautomatio Liming' device
th€:JVLa:x:W€l11 ..LJV~L.~V;'.u." JUIce scales,
aH<OQ'Hren of a limed juice sampling device .. The volume
1'p.(r1l1~+f,rl from a knowledge of the- pH value of a representative
sample collected over 15. minutes and the general behaviour ·of· the juice on
,clarification. The uniformity of pH determinations shows a large improvement
. this limingancl sampling. arrangement was installed.
It was found beneficial-to lower the density of the juice when the settling
of impurities was slow, in most cases the benefit from increased settlirigrate
,exceeding the effect. of the increased volume..
Careful control of all material in process includes-
(a) Low liming of cachaza.
(b) The return to limed juice of all filtered juice and tank washings:
(c) Screening of the clarified juice.
(d) Evaporation of the juice at low temperaturesandiu as short
a time. as .possible.
A description is given of the method used to neutralize the molasses with
soda ash automatically. and continuously.
The .sugar boiling system is varied to suit the type of sugar required.
'The twomassecuite system is used when making export sugar of 96·0 to 96·5
polarisation and when the purity of the syrup is high. The three massecuite
system is used when>making high polarisation for local consumption or export
.sugar polarising up to 97·9°, or when the syrup purity is low.
Reasons are given for adopting these boiling systems.
Various processes -are described which have been used for treating the
:sugar from thefinalimassecuite, The method finally found most satisfactory
is to fornla magma with this sugar and. syrup and use it as seed for . 1st
massecuites; the. 2nd (final) massecuite being grained on syrup and cooled
in crystallizers to 45°~40° C. over 60-80 hours.

Report on Refining Quality of South 'African' Raw

Sugars, 1934-35 Season.
by
F.W. HAYJi;s,
Experiment Station,S. A.Bngar Association, Nata,b.
During the 1933 Crop Season' work was done at Hulett's Darriall Iabora-
tory on samples of export Natal raws derived from the reference samples .for
sulphur dioxide content sent to'; the Experiment Station. Onthisworkbeing
reviewed ,at subsequent meetings oLthe Committee on Standardization of
Chemical Control, it was agreed that, although the results alreadyobtainedwei;e
~aluable,it was desirable that further information should be obtained during the