Los Angeles herald., 1891-08-31
How Beets Are Turned Into
Chino Sugar.
The Process in Use at the Ok
nard Factory.
Loads of Beets at One End and at
the Otner Sacks of Sugar.
A Graphic Description of the Work
at the Factory = Many
Interesting Details
Given.

sThe Chino Champion publishes an ac-
count of beet-sugar making, from which
the following is taken:
:. Returning now to the en-
trance to the grounds atsthe business
Office, we will attempt to follow load
OF sugar beets into and through the fac
tory, watching the juice as it is clarified,
evaporated, granulated, dried and deliv-
cred in sacks for the wholesale and re-
tail trade. But here comes Mr.. Gird's
traction engine with train of from five
TO eight wagons, made by him for the
purpose, and each holding about two
tons of beets. Each load, as it is driven
across the scales. is weighed and a
weight check given for it. Z.
The two beet sheds are 200 feet long
and have capacity of 1900 tons each.
They are covered with canvas and have
sloping walls. Along the bottom of
each is fume of running water, into
which the beets are allowed to drop as
they are needed in the factory. The
current carries them to the bottom of
an inclined spiral elevator in the
northeast corner of the building. The
elevator is twenty-eight feet long, and
in the lower end of it the beets receive
their first washing, large volume of
water being carried part way up, when
it escapes through grating in the con-
duit. From the spiral elevator the beets
are turned into the washing machine, a
large tank filed with water, with hori-
zontal shaft and revolving paddles
which remove all dirt. They are then
delivered through funnel-shaped
spout, arranged to allow free discharge
of drip water into large bucket ele-
vator. This carries the beets to
the third floor of the building, where
they are weighed on automatic scales
having q capacity of 500 pounds.
They then pass the discharge gate into
the slicing machine on the second floor.
The slicers consist OF sixteen knives,
each having from twenty-five to twenty
five V-shaped subdivisions.
The slices, which are fine and trian-
gular-shaped to prevent packing too
solidly, are now delivered onto belt
conveyor running through long trough,
from which they are fed to the diffusion
battery. A minute description
OF the process of diffusion would be
difficult and unintelligible to the aver
age reader.
The process is much like that of re-
peatedly sleeping tea. The pulp from
which the saccharine qualities have
been eliminated is now taken from each
cell in turn, as the operation is COM
pleted, and turned into another con-
veyor, from which it is elevated to the
third floor, where it is pressed and
dumped into the cars of the G. V. rail-
road and taken to Mr.. Gird's cattle.
Returning now to the juice as it tleaves
the battery, we find that it runs into a
measuring tank supplied with control
apparatus and electric bell signal. 1t is
then heated to temperature of 100 de-
grees in two steam heaters, each having
. heating surface of 400 square feet. The
sap, which is dirty-looking fluid with
a disagreeable taste and smell, is run by
gravity into the fret saturation tank,
where it is treated with milk oflime and
earbonic acid gas. In this tank a chemical
action takes place, resulting in the pre-
cipitation of most of the impurities and
foreign matter, and che juice becomes
clear, light-yellow, alkaline, and emits
an odor of ammonia. 1t is then pumped
through a double Click filter press,
which has hydraulic joints and 320
frames standing on edge, with filter
ing surface OF 1000 square feet. This
press produces 600 gallons of lime refuse
in cakes Ia inches thick, which falls
directly from the frames into small
tramway cars and are wheeled out of
the building on an elevated track to the
dumping ground. This refuse is most
excellent fertilizer.
The juice now passes through two
Danek filters, is then subjected to Sec
.Ond carbonation with milk of lime, then
through second filter press, and then
is pumped into the tower of the building,
where sulphurous acid gas is forced
through it. Ihe clarifying
and refining process is then completed
by passing the juice through two more
filters, when it is ready to be boiled.
The evaporating apparatus consists OF
four large pans OF 1900 square feet OF
heating surface each, along the east wall
the heating medium. From these pans
the thick syrup, which is now called
smasse cutie, is run into two huge vacu-
am pans of 3O, 900 pounds capacity each,
located in the center of the south end ol
the third floor. Here live steam is used
for heating, and advantage is taken of
the principle that evaporation takes
place more rapidly under vacuum.
This completes the evaporation OF the
syrup, which is now thick mass about
the color of maple sugar. It is then run
to the mixers on the second floor, where
it is kept stirred to prevent settling un.
til it is used in the centrifugals.
The centrifugal machines are seven in
number, on the ground floor directly
under the mixers, from which spouts
lead the masse cutie directly into
them. Each one is forty inches
in diameter and about as deep: They
are made Of copper, perforated on the
eides and enclosed in q stationary cast.
iron casing with q space between and
lined with 1ne-mesh wire screen. The
centrifugal is suspended inside the cas-.
ing BY shaft from above with bearings
1t the bottom. But now all is ready, 9
slide is drawn above one OF the machlnes
and the heavy masse cutie is allowed to
run probably sbout ten inches deep in
the bottom Of the centrifugal, the slide
~ closed and the machine started.
Il 4 few seconds it reaches q
velocity Of $50 revolutions per minute.
AZ soon e. the machine starts
the masse cutie begins to rise OH the
aides BY tie centrifugal force till it
reaches the top in 9 uniform lining,
nvobahlv about three inches thick. But