TABLE OF CONTENTS
TITLE PAGE.i
DECLARATION ii
APPROVAL iii
DEDICATION iv
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS v
DEFINITION OF TERMS vi
ABSTRACT vii
TABLE OF CONTENTS viii
LIST OF TABLES xi
TABLE OF FIGURES xii
CHAPTER ONE 1
1.0 Introduction I
1.1 Problem statement 2
1.2 Aim 2
1.2.1 Objectives 2
1.3 Significance of the study 2
1.4 Scope of study 3
CHAPTER TWO 4
2.0 Introduction 4
2.1 Process Description 4
2.1.1 Cane sugar production 4
2,1.2 Harvesting and transport 5
2.1.3 Canepreparation 5
2.1.4 Milling 6
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2.1.5 Clarification .6
2.1.6 Mud Filtration 8
2.1.7 Evaporation 9
2.1.8 Syrup Sulphitation 9
2.1.9 Centrifhgation 9
2.1.10 SugarDrying 11
2.2 Evaporation 11
2.2.1 Evaporators 11
2.2.2 Evaporator operations 12
2.3 Inversion losses in evaporators 13
CHAPTER THREE 16
3.0 Methods and materials 16
3.1 Sampling and sampling design 16
3.1.1 Studyarea 16
3.1.2 Sample selection 16
3.2 Determination of pH ofjuice 17
3.2.1 Principle of method 17
3.2.2 Procedure 17
3.3 Determination of brix ofjuice ~.. 17
3.3.1 Principle of operation 18
3.3.2 Procedure 18
3.4 Determining the pol and purity of the juice 18
3.4.1 Principle of operation 19
3.4.2 Procedure 19
3.5 Detennining reducing sugars in the juice 19
ix
3.5.1 Original Lane and Eynon method .19
3.5.2 Principle of the method 20
3.5.3 Procedure 20
CHAPTER FOUR 21
4.0 Results and Discussions 21
4.1 Effect of pH on clarified juice 22
4.2 Effect of reducing sugars content on the purity of clarified juice 24
4.3 Effect of pH on syrup 27
4.4 Effect of reducing sugars content on the purity of syrup 28
4.5 Calculation of the percentage increase in reducing sugars 29
CHAPTER FIVE 30
5.0 Conclusion and Recommendations 30
5.1 Conclusion 30
5.2 Recommendations 30
CHAPTER SIX 21
6.0 References 31
ABSTRACT A major aim of this research project has been to quantify industrial sucrose losses due to inversion in multiple effect evaporators. This paper discusses new insights gained from this project on sucrose losses in sugarcane juices and syrups at high temperatures during different evaporation and clarification processes. In general, for the factory most sucrose inversion losses occurred in the pre-evaporators and were more of a function of temperature, pH and retention time (R.). Sucrose inversion only occurred in later evaporator bodies when scale had built up. Increasing the factory target pH of the clarified juice (Ci) or final evaporator syrup (FES) systematically reduced losses of sucrose and a target FES pH of 6.5 - 6.8 (equivalent to a target CJ pH of 7.0-7.2) is recommended; however, scaling effects can override pH effects
