Basic steps of sugar cane production

In general, the basic steps of sugar cane production are: raw materials → juice extraction → clarification → evaporation → sugar boiling and crystallization → honey separation → drying →Screening→Packaging→Storage

1. Juice extraction

The exudation method is basically introduced from the beet sugar making method or process. Practice has proved that the superiority of the sugarcane infiltration method lies in not only low cost, low power consumption, safe operation, simple maintenance and management, but also a high sugar recovery rate. Therefore, it is inevitable for sugarcane juice extraction to develop towards the exudation method.

2. Clarification

The purpose is to improve the purity of sugar juice by removing non-sugar components, and reduce its viscosity and color value, so as to provide high-quality raw syrup for boiled sugar crystallization. The traditional clarification method used by sugar factories simply adds lime as a clarifier to the sugar juice to precipitate some non-sugar components. After sedimentation and filtration, the clear juice is obtained, and finally sent to the evaporation station to evaporate and thicken into syrup.

3. Evaporation

Before boiling sugar, a multi-effect evaporation operation must be used to concentrate the sugar juice. When the sugar juice evaporates, sucrose, reducing sugar and other non-sugar components will change in temperature and pH value. A series of chemical changes will occur under the influence of conditions such as concentration and concentration. For example: sucrose conversion and caramelization, reducing sugar decomposition, scale generation, etc. The laws of these chemical changes must be studied for better control.

In general, the evaporation section must meet the requirements of sugar production technology and heat utilization. First, ensure the syrup concentration. Second, reduce sugar loss. Third, slow down the rate of scale formation. Fourth, improve heat energy utilization and reduce heat energy loss.

4. Cooking and refining

A series of processes such as sugar boiling, crystallization assistance, honey separation, drying, screening and packaging are the last section of sugar factory production, that is, the boiling and refining section. The quality of this section of work has a great impact on product quality and sugar recovery.

5. Honey separation

Honey separation is to use the centrifugal force generated by the rapid rotation of the centrifuge to throw out the molasses, while the sucrose crystals remain due to the obstruction of the screen. in the sieve basket.

6. Drying

The white sugar coming out of the centrifuge still contains 0.5%-2.0% moisture and needs to be dried and cooled before packaging and storage, otherwise it will easily deliquesce. , agglomeration and deterioration, making the sugar unable to be stored for a long time.

7. Screening

The sugar coming out of the dryer contains many lumps and powdered sugar, and the grain sizes are different. In order to ensure product quality, it needs to be screened and classified. At the same time, the sugar can be fully cooled during the screening process to facilitate packaging and storage.

8. Packaging

The screened white sugar is unloaded from the sugar storage hopper into sugar bags for packaging. At present, the white sugar produced by my country's cane sugar factories is packed in plastic woven bags, and coarse, medium and fine-grained white sugar should be packaged separately, each bag is 50 kilograms. In large sugar factories, packaging mechanization and automation have been realized. That is, a lever-type automatic scale is installed under the sugar storage hopper. When the sugar bag is filled with 50 kilograms, it will automatically stop loading sugar, and then the sugar bag will be sent to the automatic scale by the conveyor belt. The weight is corrected, and then the seams are sewn by a mechanical automatic sewing machine, and then transported to the warehouse for storage by a conveyor belt.

9. Storage

There are certain technological requirements for the storage of sugar. Otherwise, accidents such as deliquescence, agglomeration, rancidity or discoloration may occur due to improper storage, affecting product quality.