Burlington free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1827-1865, 1837-02-03
PROCESS OF MAKING BEET SU-
GAR


The attention of the public having been
some time drawn TO the manufacture of SUI
gar from he beet and having repeatedly
recommended its cultivation to farmers as
profitable crop, we have felt ourselves IN
der al obligation to give 'hetn the details of
the process by which it is extracted. We
have, therefore, examined the best author
lies on the subjeci, and consulted several
gentlemen of some practical knowledge and
experience N The business, and the result
Of our investigation is that the process is
altogether more simple aud less expensive
than has generally been supposed, In de-
scr,bing the various processes in the man.
ufacturr. we have carefully avoided the
use of chemical terms, and substituted Lam
guage which we hope will be understood by
every reader.
There are several varieties of the beet
which yield sugar, but the Sllesian beet is
recommended as the best and most produ.
tive. This beet will come to maturity IN
all parts of the UNITED States, up to the
45lh degree of latitude. Tho soil most
congrnIal to its growth is a light sandy
loan, of good depth, and if free from stones
the better. Probably no county in the
world is better adapted to the growth Of
| lhls root than the alluvlal meadows or the
Connecticut and other rivers Of New Eng.
! land. The cultivation, however, need not
be confined to valIes, as in most Of the hull
towns, lands may be found well adapted to
its growth. The land is prepared for the
seen by deep ploughing aud pu|verizing the
surface. This is best accomplished by
ploughing in the full and leaving the land
| n thfnnuh hn nj In b,,
spring The land should be cross ploughed
and narrowed, and, if the soil be light, it
viii be prepared to receive the seed. The
seed may be sown as carly as the season
will admit. broad cast, or in drills but nj
limaley the plants should be from I2 10 10
inches apart. They should be hoed and
kept free Of weeds-at the second hoeing
they should be thnncd out and but one
plan, left in the hil-lhe surplus plants may
De ,ransplnnted to vacan; places in the
field.
| In The extraction of the sugar, the beets
must first be cleaned by washing CT scrap
ing with knife, and care be taken that
all decayed parts be cut off They must
lhc1 be passed through the rusper ana DC
reduced to a pulp the finer they are ras
ped the better, as 1t facilitates expressing
the Juice The pulp must then be put into
cloth bags aud have the juice pressed out
by screw press. In France they use the
hydraulic press, but cider, or other pres.
will answer the purpose, and be attended
with much less expense. As deconpos
| ton commences soon after thebeet is out
of the ground, and progrcssesrupidly, no
time 81 ould be lost in converting them into
sugar,
After the juice is expressed, and before
it is converted into sugar, i, must undergo
four distinct and different processes. /.
Dedication. .. Evaporation. Clarified
ton. 4. Concentration.
DELEGATION.
The composition OF the beet juice does
no, differ essentially from hat Of the cane
1t combines with the saccharine matter
small quantities OF malic or acetic acid,
wax aud mucllage, which must be extrac.
ted before evaporation is commenced. The
first process, therefore, is to purify the juice,
which must b. done by nrurallz'ng the
acid, decomposlng the WAX and congua-
ting the mucllage, and hence is called de-
location. All this may be done by heating
and mixing with it the milk of lime in abou,
the proportion Of 4G grains troy weight To
the gallon. The milk Of lime Is prepared
by shaking quick lime with hot water,
aud reducing it to the consiscnce of cream
The Juice must be heated to about l60 de-
grces Fahrenheit, and the milk of lime
poured into it and thoroughly mixed by
stirring wi b stick. After 1t is intimate
Iy mxcd, The stirring must be stopped and
the mixture suffered to rest for a shorl
time. 1t mCst then be heated to the boil
; lag point, which will throw the impurille,
upon The surface in The form of scum. wheI
4, the boiling must be stopped When the
! JUICE has become clear 1t must be drawn
! off from below, by means OF Il cock, or h,
scum aust be SKINNED off from the top
7 care being taken in either case 10 effect
= complete separation
u EVAPORATION.
=, The next process in the manufacture i
', To dissi pate The water. which is done b.
boiling away" as it is commonly called
, but IN technical language, evaporation.
y IN The process of DELEGATION an excess O
lime has been used it should be extracted
. This may be done by mixture of sui phu
Il rc acid and water, IN the proportion OF on
T. of the iormsr to forty four of the latter
4, This mixture, put in contact with the lime
= causes an effsrvescence, by which the lime
, is thrown off, aud the cessation of which
l. sure evidence that the lime is neu'ralised
Some manufacturers say that small por
ton OF lime should be allowed to remain
and Others that the whole should be neu
rs tralzed. AS practical men differ on ih
g point, we may safely conclude it is nc
At very material.
r. The juice is boiled down til it is redu
o. ced to about one fifth or one sixth of il
'e original quantity, For this purpose par
d. or kettles may be used but it will be see
Of that those vessels which present the grea
IN est surface to the fire, and give the lea.