The Richmond palladium. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1855-1875, 1863-04-24
Agrirultnral department.
WHY Sorghum Juice Dies Not Crys-
(aIliZe.


R. W. Bender. a practical chemist. con.
nected with the Chicago Sugar Refinery.
discusses this question in the Chicago Tri-
bune from ne " point OF view He divides
the sugar of sorghum juice into two kinds.
cane sugar and grape sugar. Cane sugar
crystallizes rapidly. grape sugar with diff
Guilty. aud the crystals are of small and
underlined shape. When mixed in the
saccharrns juice. refners assume that one
part of the grape sugar prevents one part of
cane sugar from crystallizing, rendering the
Juice ft only for syrup where it contains
equal parts Of each. The practical point in
working up sorghum is. what are the rela
tive proportions of the two kinds in the
cane at different periods of ripeness, and in
different varieties of cane While some
writer's assume that the saccharine matter
of the sorghum is altogether crystallizable,
Mr.. Bender, from a variety OF experiments
on the fresh cane as well as on syrups. finds
that the grape sugar amounts to from J to
Of the whole saccharine matter. and sill
less in some varieties Of the imphee. Fully
matured cane seems 10 have less grape
sugar than unripened. He assumes that
one acre of we'll cultivated land will produce
goo gallons Of syrup, equal to $500 pounds.
1,725 pounds Of which is saccharine mat
ter, and SIS pounds water and new sugar,
If one fourth be grape sugar, say 431
pounds. the same amount of cane sugar
will be uncrystalized, being yield per
acre of 86o pounds of cane sugar. Ii one
third be grape sugar, the yield will be 862
pounds in the first case and 1850 pounds in
the latter.
He then discusses the cause Of failure in
the production OF sugar from the sorghum
juice. The juice of the beet contains. it
fresh, only cane sugar. but also large
amount Of salts Of potash, pectine, albumen,
and other matters, which are termed by the
reGner, "syrup forming substances be-
cause their direct tendency is to prevent
granulation by combining with the cane
sugar and forming uncrystallizable com
pounds. Some Of them change cane sugar
very rapidly to grape sugar. These sub
stances are present in high degree in beets
raised on highly manured land, and in
greater degree in beets OF large size than
in those weighing less than five pounds
To granulate beet juice successfully. 1t IS
necessary TO refine it at the outset with
bone black. before concentration Is attempt
ed. Otherwise the beet would yield
small amount of su gar and large amount
OF black. saline. unpalatable molasses, mt
only for distilling into spirits.
The juice Of the sorghum is analogous to
that of the sugar, but in this respect IT con-
tains an amount of slbuminous and nitro
genous matter equal to that Of saline matter
in the beet. The nitrogenous matter In
sorghum juice amounts to per cent. 1t
forms a principal part Of the green and
white scums. Mechanically dif1used through
the juice, as An opalescent. slimy mass, by
boiling, it prevents crvstaliization, and
chemically tends to change cane into grape
sugar. Hence i. should be separated from
the juice as soon as it leaves the crusher.
The salts Of potash and soda not so
easily removed by the refining process. and
when present in appreciabls quantity pro-
duce smeary and gummy syrups. AS they
are derived from the soil. soil too rich in
these constituents should be avoided. A
perfect naturalization Of the acid in the juice
is also important.
Mr.. Bender sums up the essentials OF
success to be:
1. A good cultivation of good variety
of cane on the proper soil.
2. Preparation Of the cane for the mill,
cutting the tops and stripping the leaves.
3. Refining the juice, before evaporation.
with suitable apparatus.
The last requisite will uecessitate large
outlay Of money in machinery and build
ings, requiring neighborhood reineries to
be built