The New Orleans daily Democrat. [volume] (New Orleans, La.) 1877-1880, 1879-08-08

auLlIultf Vi uBbdtIIIIOiI9 III tfbLi5 UlINu |
In beets. A reformation has been established
In this direction even In Europe, suggesting
the still greater necessity here. The d~lff,isers
have been reduced in size, until we find by
recent accounts that the best practice, as e1-
hiblted In Austria, has resulted in reducing
the total period Of diffusion to less than two
hours, as against eight to ten hours formerly.
In addition to the prevention Of tactic fer
mentation BY this quick WORK, tie pectine
contained In the cane is not dissolved. This
has been O great difficulty in the way OF diffu-
sion. as pectine prevents several times It's
own weight OF cane sugar from crystalllzlng,
but 1t is found that 1t Is not so soluble as cate
sugar, and that by this rapid work its solu-
tion iB almost entirely avoided. DubInnfaut,
the eminent French authority in matters re-
lating to the sugar industry, makes this a
special point Ia his treatise on osmose, claim
ing that osmose, OF which process he claims
diffusion Is but a modification, has this special
merit of withdrawing the cane sugar by solu-
ton, before the contained pectine has time TO
dfssolve. 1t Is much to be deplored that these
facts, as to the danger OF the Tactic fermenta-
ton and the slower sOlnbility OF pectfne were
not ~ well known in 1873, when diffusion was
first introduced into Louisiana, as now, as In
that event the method might now have been
In successful operation here, to our great a1-
vantage. as II seems TO have been improved In
Europe to the great advantage there OF those
who have had the means to reduce the method
To IN successful issue. ~
Another noticeable objection 70 Inc lEJfO-
duction of diffusion here exists In the fact that
bone black filters are here used to u very
slight extent, and the diffusion method seems
to demand their use for the thorough elhrltlca-
tion of the juice. 1t Is true the cane chips in
the diffUsers cause the ditfusers themselves to
aet as filters, and, III fact, It'll said that muddy
water, ii introduced into a filled diffuser, will
emerge clear as crystal. On the other hand,
~cessful, bone black filters are in general
use, and 1t has been thought that to their
non-use was fairly attributable some Of the
misfurtunes OF the diffusion method here.
La the extraction of juice by the diffusion
methods, a leading feature Is the coagula-
ton OF I'LL Of the albuminofds within the
cells Of the cane. The cane chips then acting
as q mechanical filter and removing the
mechanical Impurities. AS against this the
juice extracted by the ordinary cane mill con-
tains the albuminoids In solution, and in the
process OF Qualification they are %coagulatel
by heat and rise TO the surface, bearing with
them many Of the mechanical Impurities cot-
tained in the juice, the remainder being de-
posted as a sediment. lThe albuminoids
here exercise a very important function, ideI-
tical with that of blood as formerly used In
sugar refineries, ard it Is owing to this fact
that we are able to produce by our present
crude processes such nigh grade s1lgars.) AS
before stated, it has been held that diffusion
Juice was really injured by the absence of
these albuminuldB and the necessary result
imperfect Qualification, but q careful consid-
GRAFTON OF the matter leads us to think that
by the time the diffusion juice has passed
through six or seven dlifusets filled with cane
chips, it is certainly more nearly freed from
all mechanical impurities than would be pos
sible III ordinary Qualification, and thnt the
difficulties heretofore exhibited by diffusion
Ia the direction Of imperfect Qualification
have arisen from slow working and resulting
tactic fermentation arising from the decotll-
position Of the albuminOids, just as in our or
binary processes we find that q freeze so de-
con poses the ~albunlnoids that Qualification
becomes impossible.
~ II. tI., -, r-o &t;y1, l.,NnroI IF fhn
objection to diffusion that diffusion juices do
not clarity well, We consider the next common
objection, which is the possible injury to the
Juice resulting from the quantity OF water ill.,
truuuc.d into II, In the diffusion process, and
the resulting additional cost Of evaporation.
In the extraction OF juice by cane mills
there Is such an enormous expenditure OF
power, and hence resulting consumption OF
iupI, that at a glance 1t becomes evident that
an increase In the cost OF evaporation by diff
fusion, even Ii it reaches % per cent, Is fully
counterbalanced thereby.
In regard to the injury to the juice by the
introduction OF SO much water, estimated
generally at 20 per cent, there seems thus far
TO have been no doubt as to the fact, 50 far as
experiments have been made In this country.
This, however, seems to be the result OF time,
} the juice deteliOrating more rapidly at a low
density than at its natural density. and as
In this very direction we have already noticed
that the chief improvement in Europe has
been made, the entire duration OF diffusion
having been reduced to less than two hours,
we think that a like speed here will deliver
the juice without deterioration.
1t Is now Left to US to consider the cost OF
the diffusion outfit, as compared with the cost
; OF a came mill OF equal capacity, and the com
p~arative Weld by the two modes of extraction.
4 very slight investigation Will establish the
fact that the diffusion outfit will cost less than
} that Ut the cane mill, and hence We are led to
rest the chief merit or demerit OF diffusion on
It's capacity to surpass or equal the cane mill
4 / ~, H.. xx,st..r f.. A. " TRACT frftn fha G11DDr "a ma
} the juice therein.
Let us consider, then, the results herein re-
ported. at Aska some 8 per cent OF cane
sugar has been obtained by diffusion; In
Guadaloupe IL and Is per cent yield OF cane
is claimed. A yield OF Ia per cent by the mill
process is probably above the average In
either OF these localities. In Louisiana but
3 49, 100 per cent was obtained In 1878; 5 23.10O
per cent was obtained in 1874, and In 1875
there was obtained by Messrs. Anderson and
Sim pson 5 So 100 per cent, a better result than
was obtained from any mill in Louisiana that
year or since, SO lar as we can learn.
III then Messrs. Anderson and Simpson were
able to obtain in the season OF 1856, III
pounds of sugar per ton Of cane consumed,
J and this with an apparatus but imperfectly
understood aud not yet fully adapted to the
! cane sugar industry, and II by the other best
process known to rs here the result obtained
bs Anderson and Simpson stands unFqualed,
then we think it il fair conclusion that dif-
} fusion Is u better method OF extracting cane
juice than the ordinary process by mills, and
That, as suCn, it deserves the encouragement
} of this association.
The old method has been in use more than
a century, and all Of It's vicissitudes are well
known and carefully provided for, and the
} present average results are about all we can
fairly expect from il.
Diffusion, az applied to the extraction Of
juice from the sugar cane, is a new method,
and applied only at Aska, III Guadalupe, and
here. It has and must suffer the fate OF all
} nav mathnIG IT. mist meet with manV mis-
fortunes, and only gain success by learning
the causes of its non-success. This has been
done, Is being lone. The dearly learned les
sons of the past bid fair to SO improve diffu-
} sion, rs applied to sugar cane, that the cane
planters adopting Ii shall SO increase their
yield and 50 diminish their expenses that
they will be able to hold their own against
this European giant, grow suddenlys SO great