, 1874-01-21

JUS
1t may, perhaps, be necessary to make some
remarks upon the principle of the system. Su-
gar has the power to pass through either ami
NAL or vegetable membranes. If a bladder be
filled with syrup, the mouth tied securely, and
immersed in a bucket of pure water, within a
short time the water will be Of the same sacha-
rine strength as the contents of the bladder.
IF a piece of peeled sugar cane be placed in a
vessel OF water, the same result will follow.
The sacnarine matter passes through the cells
of the cane and is held in solution by the wa
ter. Diffusion, therefore, means simply wash
ing out the sacharine matter, instead ofexpres-
sing it by application of power, This princi-
pie is now generally adopted in the3 manufao-
ture of beet-root sugar throughout Europe.
The apparatus consists simply of a machine
which cuts the cane into obIique chips, and
diffusion tanks, together with the ordinary
boiling apparatus. In due time our sugar
planters will be informed of the workings of
the apparatus now being erected at Belle AL
lance, and allowed to witness the results and
Judge for themselves.
1t is estimated that it now takes 100 pounds
of cane to make d pounds Of sugar with the
old process. By the new process it is claimed
that 8 pounds of sugar can be produced from
100 pounds of inferior cane. This would have
made the crop of last year at the lowest calcu-
lation 325,5S7 hhds, instead of los, 529 hhds.
that were produced, and the value of the crop
$30,O7l 900 instead of $1O,O27,0OO the expen-
SOS of production being about the same in both
cases.
With these preliminary remarks, we give be-
low extracts from a pamphlet. published at
Vienna by Joseph Adder, general agent for
Julius Roberts process:
The diffusion process, invented by NJ. Julius
ID 1l.A ~ CT --sK + a. III -
by him to the extraction of sugar from beet
root lin about three hundred different sugar
factories in Germany, Poland, Russia and Hol-
land) has been introduced in the East Indies
by Mr.. +. j. V. Minchin, and applied to the
extraction Of sugar cane at the works of the
Aska Sugar Company, Limited, in Aska, Ma
dras Presidency, East India.
The results Of three years experimental
working, and particularly those of the last sea
sons work which has been conducted on a com
mercial working scale, have proved the COM
plete success Of the new invention, and its
great advantages for the extraction of sugar
from the cane.
The following practical details have been
collected for the of parties interest
ed in the manufacture Of sugar
1.-MACHINERY AND PLANT.
The Aska factory had 6 cane cutting ma
chimes, of which as a maximum s were en-
ployed simultaneous the average number of
cutters at work throughout the season was not
quite 4.
The maximum quantity of cane cut in "a
hours l05 tons, the average throughout the
season 70 tons per day. The total quantity
of cane cut up was $500 tons.
A steam engine of l2-hOrse power was en-
ployed for working the whole diffusion instalIa-
ton, The steam power required for each cut
ter working up 20 tons of cane in "a hours)
is about 1-horse power. The diffusion appara-
tus consisted of 2 batteries of 20 vessels each;
q. e., 20 diffusion vessels constructed of woodin
India, and supplied with the necessary pipes,
valves, and fittings, sent out from Europe.
The vessels were cylindrical, 10 cubic feet
internal capacity each, and capable of holding
about 1850 gallons of water.
The construction of wooden vessels, although
economical in first cost, has some serious dis
advantages, amongst which the leakage and
consequent loss of juice are the most serious.
1t is therefore advisable to construct the diffu-
sion battery Of iron, as is generally done 10
Europe, in the b%eet-root diffusion factories.
The time for filling one vessel was from 30
to 40 minutes. The average number of vessels
filled in "a hours was 35, so that each vessel
was reflled less than twice in "a hours. 1t is
-1.c;b1a 70 uvn.lr f,cE,, IT.. - IL