The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1905-07-28
SUGAR.

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| United States Consul T. c. Jones, at
FunchaI, Madeira, writes a long letter
to the Department of Commerce and
Labor about Improved Cane Sugar
Manufacture. This is issued in the
following form as a bulletin:
Till quite recently the improve
nents in the cultivation Of cane and
the manufacture OF cane sugar have
by no means kept pace With those
made in the manufacture of beet sugar.
A few years ago the yield OF beet
sugar was about 5 per cent. of the
weight of beet, whereas now a return
of II per cent, and even u per cent,
is obtained in all up-to-date factories
This is due to the superior quality
of beet consequent on improved meth
DDS of cultivation, TO the improved
methods of extracting the juice, and
to the close control exercised by a staff
of experienced chemists over the daily
working and output of the plant. The
beet as well as the juice is analysed
and until it is turned into dry sugar,
every stage Of the process is jealously
watched by the chemist and mis- staff
The analysis shows the amount OF
sugar in the beet in its initial condi-
ton. and as the juice is analysed in
every subsequent stage Of the process,
one is enabled to follow the working of
the factory day by day, and any loss is
Immediately detected and located.
THE difference between the mode Of
manufacture employed by some of the
British colonial cane factories and that
of the modern beet factories is so marks
ed that one wonders that the cane
factories manage to exist in these days
of competition In most cases they
have no chemical control whatever,
and in many instances the cane is not
even weighed.
The point where cane-sugar manu-
facturers fail principally is in the ex-
traction of the juice. IN beet factories
a diffusion process is used which ex-
tracts practically all the saccharine
matter. In cane factories powerful
steam mills are used, consisting prin-
cipally of three rollers, and in many
factories double and triple crushing is
employed. but though a much larger
percentage of juice is extracted by
triple crushing the yield Of sugar is not
proportionate, as, owing to the repeat
ed crushing. impurities find their way
into the juice. making it more trouble
some to work up into sugar. The juice
is then clarified by means of lime,
which, when the juice is heated, com
bines with the alburnen suspended in
the juice in a gela tinous form and neu-
tralizes the free acids. so that when the
boiling point is reached the juice is di
vided into a clear liquid and a thick
layer of scum. The clear liquid is
evaporated till sugar is produced. The
scum, which contains a large amount of
sugar, is either passed through filter
presses or sent to the distillery, Or in
many cases simply thrown away.
Sugar cane contains about 50 to 80
per cent Of juice. With single crush
ing only about 90 per cent. is obtain
ed. With double crushing most plant
rerS consider themselves extremely
lucky if they get y per cent. The best
extraction is at present obtained by
triple crushing, with maceration by
water between the mills, which gives
about So per cent. of juice: but owing
TO the many impurities in the juice and
the extra cost of evaporation, this
method has been condemned by many.
While in France in 1901 one of the
large producers of Madeira was much
impressed by the new process in diff
fusion, called the 'Naudet process by
which the extraction is higher and
juice of greater density is produced. He
applied this process of diffusion to the
production of cane sugar in 1903 with
very remarkable results, the outcome
being further improvement in the
diffusion process, which has now been
patented in Great Britain and colonies
as the Naudet-Hinton process. Messrs.
Hinton have continued to work with
this process, and at the close of their
1905 crushing season they are satisfied
that il is a complete success.
The ordinary diffusion process has
been often tried for cane, but though
the extraction was perfect. the process
did not lead to financial success, as it
was necessary to cut the cane into very
thin slices or chips, and these slices
after diffusion could not be used as
fuel. Moreover the juice extracted was
OF evaporation was not repaid by the
larger extraction of sugar.
In this new process the cane is
single crushed in the ordinary way.
The megass, which still contains large
amount of sugar. is put into battery
of diffusers. where not only is the sugar
extracted with a loss Of only o.3 to