Module 11: Sugar - Refining

Module 11: Sugar – Refining
Module 11
Sugar - Refining
Sugar Engineering and Manufacturing Training Team

1
Refining Qualities on Raw Sugar
For a refiner, raw sugar is the prime material, and good refining quality of raw sugar is as
important for the refiner as good and fresh cane for the raw sugar house.
Factories with the back-end refineries have a marked advantage over independent refineries
concerning the quality of raw material, for the flowing reasons.
The boiling process can be adapted to produce the best quality of raw sugar most
suitable for the back-end refinery.
All the material to be refined can be obtained from “A” massecuites.
The affination process, which is an expensive one, can be eliminated as this step can be
carried out in the centrifugals.
Al returns from the refinery can be sent back to the raw house.
On the other hand, the independent refiner operates on purchased raw sugar and dif there are
variations in the quality of raw sugar delivered to the refinery, its production will be affected.
Fig.1 below shows the affination step and it is clear that if the quality of the raw sugars varies,
the refiner will end up with more or less products in his recovery houses. If the recovery house is
overload, the refiner will have to reduce the production rate.

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Figure 1: Affination Step
Raw Sugar Quality Desired By the Refiner
The system of purchasing raw sugar by the refiner varies in different countries but in all cases,
the refiner will ask for:
A Sugar that will “Wash” Well, i.e. give a maximum yield of washed sugar of high purity
with the use of a minimum quantity of wash water in the centrifugal, there by assuring a
relatively small amount of raw sugar wash of affination syrup.
A Sugar of Good Filterability that will filter rapidly in pressure filters and work well in
the clarification process.
A Sugar of Low Color and of such composition that it will decolorize readily.

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A part from the primary characteristics mentioned above, the refiner also prefers a raw sugar of
low ash: sucrose ratio, because such sugars in general yield a higher proportion of refined sugar.
Also low sulphate content in the ash is preferable to avoid scaling evaporation tubes and to
ensure freedom from turbidity in final syrups. It is obvious that other conditions being equal, the
higher the polarization, the easier a sugar is refined, but polarization alone is not a criterion of a
refining quality.
Causes of Poor Refining Quality
The fundamental causes of poor quality sugar originate in the cane and unusually poor quality
sugar is generally attributed to:
Cane Variety
Soil
Cultivation
Climate: Cane can be damaged by frost, cyclone and drought
Pests and disease such as white bugs, gumming diseases
Abnormal delay between cutting and crushing
Burnt cane, if the cane is snot and crushed within 48 hours
However, manufacturing methods play a great part in the refining quality of the resulting sugars,
the most important steps being.
Good mill sanitation
Good clarification which involves good flow, temperature and pH control of mixed
juice. Proper addition of flocculants.
Appropriate boiling scheme
Good sugar boiling good purging in the centrifugals

4
Steps Top Be Taken To Obtain A Raw Sugar of Good Refining Quality
Good Mill Sanitation.
Good Raw Material – (Sugar Cane) which should be processed as soon as possible.
Enzymatic Process- Employing the ‘Enzymatic Process’ for removing starch from the
juice, this method is based on the fact that if mixed juice before liming is kept at a
temperature (73 0C) for a right period of time (12 – 15 minutes) the starch destroying
enzymes naturally presents in mixed juice will remove a large proportion of the starch
(50 – 70 %).
Good Clarification – Good flow, pH and temperature control of the mixed juice
together with proper addition of flocculants so as to obtain a good clarification of the
juice.
Good Boiling Scheme - Adopting a pan boiling scheme which will yield a high quality
commercial raw-at Belle Vue factory , the process which has been adopted is the
straight three boiling systems where “C” sugar is remelted and “B” sugar used as
fooling for “A” massecuties. All the raw sugar for the refinery is thus obtained for “A”
massecuites of high purity.
This boiling scheme, together with good control gives “A” sugar of good refining quality; High
Pol. low ash content, high filterability and low starch content .The “A” sugar crystals boiled
from “B” magma are uniform in grain size and well shaped and low in color. The sugar is some
uniform in quality that the affination step has been eliminated and the raw sugar for the refinery
is re-melted directly. (The color of the re-melt ranges between 800 and 1,0000 ICUMSA @ 420
µm)

5
Syrup Clarification
The syrup clarification process in operation at Belle Vue yields a sugar with refining qualities,
but one should consider each specific case to know if the extra expenses will be repaid for.
Good Purging In the Centrifugals
The curing step is an important one, mainly if the sugar is to be re-melted without affiniation. In
that case, great care should be taken to remove all the molasses attached to the sugar crystals -
(color of ”A” molasses is around 22,000 ICUMSA units while the color of the sugar crystals
varies between 6,000 – 1,000 ICUMSA units)

6
White Sugar Production (From Cane Sugar)
White sugars can be differentiated into:
Plantation White Sugar Colour (200 – 3000 ICUMSA@ 420 µm)

Semi-Refined White Sugars Colour (100 – 2000 ICUMSA@ 420 µm)
Refined Sugar Colour < 45 ICUMSA@ 420 µm
Plantation White Sugar
Plantation white sugar is obtained directly from cane juice after either sulphitation or
carbonatation. Juice is decolorized and white sugar produced from”A” or and “B” massecuites.
Juice sulphitation is used in some African factories and is very popular in South America and
India.
Juice carbonatation is not practiced any more.
Semi-Refined White Sugar
This can be obtained by the phosphor-defecation process on remelted raw. This process which is
very popular in Mauritius offers the advantage of producing a white sugar of uniform quality but
needs more capital expenditure and is more expensive to operate.
Refined Sugar
Refined sugar is produced from remelted raws of good quality. The most popular decolorisation
processes being:
Talofloc Process (Described in Back-End Refinery at Belle Vue S.E.)

Powdered Activated Carbons (Described in Back-End Refinery at Belle Vue S.E.)
Carbonatation
Bone Char
Granular Carbons
Ion Exchange Resins

7
Carbonatation Process
The carbonatation process is well established among English, Australian and south African cane
sugar refineries. The process consists basically of precipitating calcium carbonate in the melted
liquor, by adding lime and bubbling in carbon dioxide gas under controlled conditions of
temperature and alkalinity. A voluminous crystalline calcium carbonate precipitate is formed
which traps much of the insoluble and semi-colloidal matter as well as a proportion of the ash
and coloured substances in the liquor. The precipitate is separated from the liquor by pressure
filtration, which yields clarified liquor ready for further decolorisation, if necessary.
Carbonatation is followed by sulphitation and filtration in South Africa, Trinidad and Jamaica to
produce refined sugar in raw sugar factories.
Advantages of the Process:
Cheap Reagent (Lime and Soda)

No Skilled Labour Required
High Operating Density of the Liquor (650 Brix) Reduces Steam Requirements in the Latter
Part of the Process
Colour Removal Varies between 25 and 50 %
Good Keeping Quality of the Sugars Produced
Disadvantages:
The plant is heavy and bulky (capital expenditure is high)

Cleaning of the flue gases before compression can be troublesome
Lime plant is dirty and expensive to maintain
Disposal of the sludge can be a problem
Cotton filter cloths rapidly choke with siliceous “ash”; it is desirable to use more expensive
materials like monofilament polypropylene cloths.
Description of the Process (See Fig.3)
A proportion mixture of lime and liquor is fed from the reaction tank to the 1st saturation tank in
which at the temperature is raised to between 80 – 85 0C by steam injection or steam heated
calandria. The liquor is then transferred to the 2nd saturation tank and from there tot the filter

8
supply tank for filtration in rotary leaf filters, Carbonation is generally followed by a slight
sulphitation and filtration.
Figure 3: Carbonatation of Melted Raws

9
Carbon dioxide gas is introduced into the saturation tanks and is evenly distributed across the
Cross-section of the tanks through pipes containing a large number of small holes.
The gas is drawn from the boiler flue ducts through gas scrubbers that wash and cool the gas,
first with water and second, where fuels containing sulphur are burnt, with soda to remove any
dust particles and corrosive sulphur compounds. The gas is then compressed and pumped to the
saturation tanks. The admission of gas can be manually or automatically controlled.
Operating Conditions:
Brix of Liquor 650

Temperature of Liquor in Saturators 80 – 85 0C
Retention Time 1st Saturation Tank 45 minutes
nd
Retention Time 2 Saturation Tank 22 minutes
st
pH -1 Saturator: 9.5 – 9.8
nd
pH - 2 Saturator 8.2
pH - Sulphitation pH 7.0
Amount of Lime For every liquor, there is a particular lie does at which
the filterability is greatest. This optimum varies
between 0.4 –1.2 % CaO on solids.
Bone Char
Bone char and granular carbons are generally limited to large refineries producing between
50 – 3,000 tons or more of refined sugar per day.
Investment is very high and this process cannot be economical for refineries operating on a
seasonal basis.

10
Bone Char Operation with a Fixed Bed
In conventional bone char installation, the contact between sugar liquor and bone chart takes
place in char cisterns (also called filters). After the liquor cycle is completed, the char is
sweetened off and washed, passed through the regenerators and used again. Bone cha can be
regenerated in a klin at 550 0C and reused hundreds of times. Colour removal is very high
ranging between 99 % for fresh material to 90 % at the end of the cycle. Bone char has a cycle
time o three days.
(Reference: Meade and Chen, 10th Edition, Page 459 – 474)
Granular Carbon
Granular carbon is manufactured from coal or vegetable matter and contains more than 60 %
carbon as compared to 10 % for bone char.
A granular carbon station requires less capital investment than does a bone char house Granular
carbon can be use on clarified (phosphated or carbonated) or char filtered liquefiers. Granular
carbon columns are usually run for about 30 days while still giving over 90 % decolorisation.
Their average life is some 25 cycles.
Ion Exchange Resins
Refinery liquors can be decolorized using resins. The process is gaining in popularity since the
development of macroporous, macroreticular ion exchange resins.
Resins are generally used for polishing liquors, which have been previously decolourised by one
of the conventional process.
In South Africa, resins have been adopted in the central refinery of Hulets to decolourise the
carbonated liquor (previously bone char was used) and at all Illovo’s Noodsburg refinery.
In Brazil, resins are used to treat phosphated liquors or for the decolorsation of remelt after the
Talofloc process.

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High decolorisation rate

Easy to regenerate
Low cost of installation compared to bone char. Low cost of regeneration for countries
having cheap source of sodium chloride
Low maintenance cost
Small space required
Short time of contact (15 min.). Risk of inversion reduced to a minimum
Disadvantage:
Resins are expensive to renew and remelt must be filtered to prevent resisn deterioration
Disposal of waste brine cloud be troublesome
High water consumption
Ion Exchange Process
Previously decolorized and clarified remelt 650 Brix is filtered through rotary leaf filters
previously coated with filter aid.
The filtered liquor is then heated to 70 0C and the pH adjusted to 8. It then flows in series
through two columns; each packed with the required volume of resin. At the end of each cycle of
48 hours (100 beds volume), water is passed through the columns to displace sucrose. The resin
is then backwashed with water to break up the bed and regenerated by means of 10 % sodium
chloride solution. The sodium chloride is then rinsed with eater, which is then low down, after
which a new cycle starts. The resin life is estimated to be of 300 cycles of 100 bed volumes.
Back – End Refinery at Blle Vue S.E.
At Belle Vue sugar refinery, raw sugar remelt is decolorized by the “Talofloc process” and then,
if necessary, treated with vegetable carbon before filtration.

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Talofoc Decolourisation and Clarification Proces Atr Belle Vue S.E.
This is a process for the simultaneous clarification and decolorisation of remelt refinery liquors
in which anionic high molecular weight colour and other impurities are precipitated by the
special TALOFLOC additive which is a cationic surface active agent. The precipitated colour and
all other insoluble impurities are flocculated by a phosphatation treatment and then separated by
flotation using a trace of TALOFLOTE flotation aid.
The Process Has Four Stages:
Colorant precipitation by direct addition of TALOFLOC to melter liquor, over the range
1000 – 700 ppm on sugar solids (See Fig. 5 and 6)
Phosphatation scavenging of the precipitate by the addition of phosphoric acid and lime
to achieve the required pH, generally around pH 7.0 , over the range 300 – 600 ppm of
H3PO4 on solids.
Aeration of the reaction mixture
Reflocculation of the systems using the special flotation aid, TALOFLOTE, over the
range 5 – 10 ppm on solids and the separation of the flocculated material from the liquor
in the “Talo” clarifier.
Description of the Process (See Fig.7)
The “A” sugar remelt at 660 Brix and 65 0C is transferred to a buffer tank (1 hour retention time)
the liquor is then heated to 85 0C in a heat exchanger and then transferred to a reaction tank
where the following chemicals are added:
700 pm Talofloc on solids

300 ppm P2O5 on solids
Milk of lime (to control pH at 7.0)

13
From the reaction tank, the treated liquor is transferred to an aeration tank where it is aerated by
the injection of compressed air in a specially designed high speed (2900 rpm) aeration pump.
Flocculant (at the rte of 10 ppm on solids) is then added to the aerated liquor prior to the inlet of
the “Talo” clarifier in which clear liquor is separated from the scums.
Clear liquor is then filtered and sent to processes or, if necessary, to the carbon treatment plant
for further decolorisation. Scum is returned to the mixed juice before liming.
Controls
Temperature of heater is controlled y a temperature controller which actuates a steam

control valve.
Flow rate is measured and controlled by an electronic flow meter which regulates a flow
control valve.
Acid, Talofloc and flocculant are metered by variable speed dosing pumps, the speed of
the pumps being proportional to the rate flow.
Addition of milk of time is controlled by a pH controller which actuates a splitter box or

a variable speed dosing pump.
All the contralised in a control console placed in an air-conditioned control room.
With 700 ppm Talofloc, a deccolorisation rate of 65 % can be achieved (See Fig. 1) –
(compared to 25 % in conventional phosphor–defecation process). This rate of
decoclorisation is often sufficient for the direct production of refined sugar.
The use of Talofloc allows a considerable increase in the capacity of an existing

decolorisation station or the installation of a smaller decolorisation station in new
refineries.

14
The liquor having been previously clarified, the load on the filtration station is
considerably reduced. (However, care should be taken to avoid carry-over during
clarification, which cloud be troublesome during filtration)
The small size of the clarifier (retention time 30 minutes) and the reduced requirements
for filtration and decolourisation result in less sugar and less waste to discharge.
Disadvantage of the Process:
The high cost of chemicals which cannot e regenerated. These chemicals are:
TALOFLOC at the rate of 700 ppm on solids

TALOFLOTE at the rate of 10 ppm on soliods
PHOSPHORIC ACID at the rate of 300 ppm P2O5 on solids
Powdered Activated Carbon Treatment Plant
Powdered activated carbon is often used for the polish treatment of preciously decolorized
remelt. At Belle Vue sugar refinery, this process is used when the treated remelt is of a high
color (above 3000 ICUMSA @ 420 µm) due to some abnormal conditions.
The process requires a relatively low capital investment and is well adapted for polish
decolorisation on a seasonal operation.
Powdered activated carbon can be used only when required
Only a small stock chemical is required
High rate of decolorisation ((See Fig. 4): – 51 % decolorisation with 0.2 % and 69 %
with 0.4 % carbon)
The process is flexible and the amount of carbon can be increased at will to treat darker
liquors.

15
Disadvantages of the Process:
Carbon flying in the air where the carbon slurry is prepared. Splashing from tanks makes
floors and sides of tanks dirty.
Filtration is difficult and the addition of carbon shortens the filter cycle.
Care should be taken to have filtrates absolutely free from carbon, which will otherwise
appear in the sugar. The filtration step should be supervised carefully.
The process is not practical for refineries producing more than 500 tonnes of refined
sugar per day. For these larger refineries, granular absorbents or resins are more
advantageous and more economically on the whole.
Carbon Treatment at Belle Vue S.E (See. Fig .5)
At Bell Vue, vegetable carbon is used if the colour of treated remelt exceeds 300 ICUMSA units
(at 420 µm), and the following procedure has been established
Carbon and filter aid are mixed with pure water in the carbon preparation tank to make a slurry
(5 % carbon and 5 % filter aid).
The slurry is dosed continuously in the clarified liquor so as to obtain a concentration of 0.2 %
carbon and 0.2 % filter aid on solids in the liquor. The level is maintained in the reaction tank so
as to have a reaction time of 30 minutes. (The temperature o the liquor being 80 0C and the Brix
65 0C).
The treated liquor is then transferred to a filter supply tank and from there filtered through a
rotary leaf filter (See Fig.6) which has been previously coated with filter aid.
During filtration the flow rate is maintained constant while the pressure increase (filtration starts
at 5 psig and the filter cycle is completed at 60 psig). At the end of the cycle, the supply of liquor
is stopped and the filter is drained in the filter supply tank. The cake is then removed from the
filter cloth by water, which is sprayed on each filter leaf through rotating nozzles.

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The cake is transferred in the sludge tank and from there sent to the raw house (in the mixed
juice prior to liming).
When the filter has been thoroughly washed, a new cycle starts by pre-coating the filter with
filter aid.
Pre-coating is complete when the filtrate is absolutely clear and free from filter aid.
The liquor treated with carbon is then filtered and the pre-coat valves close. (At this stage, care
should be taken to avoid breaking the pre-coat layer on the filter cloth). The sight glasses should
be observed at the outlet of the filter and if contamination with carbon is noticed on a few filter
leaves, they should immediately be isolated by closing the specific outlet valves.
The clear filtered liquor is collected at a tank and from there, transferred to the pan station.
At Belle Vue, the following decolorisation curve is generally obtained (See Fig. 4)
Cost Decolorisation by Vegetable Carbon
At Belle Vue, the cost of additional decolorisation by vegetable carbon after decolorisation by
the TALOFLOC process was about three times higher than the cost chemicals used in the
Talofloc process alone. For a production of 30,000 tonnes in one season, the relative cost of the
various items for vegetables carbon decolorisation was:
Depreciation: 4.5 %
Interest: 13.5 %
Maintenance: 1.5 %
Chemicals: 79.6 %
Labour: 0.9 %

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Figure : Arrangement of TALO Clarifier

18
Figure : Carbonation: Arrangement of Saturators (GH)

19
Figure : Flow Diagram of Ion Exchange Plant

20
21
Figure :Piping Arrangement for Regeneration of Two-Stage Ion Exchange Decolorization System
Figure : Two-Stage Ion Exchange System During Decolorization

22
Figure : Sulphitation Plant

23
Figure : Decolorization with Talofloc

24
Figure : Curve of Decolorization with Talofloc

25
Figure : Talofloc Clarification Station

26
Figure : Decolorization of Previously Decolorized Remelt with Vegatable Carbon

27
Figure : Carbon Treatment and Filtration Plant (Continuous Process)

28
Figure : Rotary Filter

29
Figure : Flow Diagram of Clarification Station

30
Sample Examination Questions
Module: Sugar Refining
Date: 18 November 2011
Time Allowed: 90 Minutes
Mark Allocated: 100 Marks
Q1. What are the steps to be taken to obtain a sugar of good refining quality?
Q2. Describe the phosphor-defecation process (Talofloc process) for the decolorisation of
remelted raws. Give the advantages and disadvantages of the process.
Q3. Describe the Carbonatation process (Using CO2 gas from the chimney) for the
decolorisation of remelted raws. Give the advantages and disadvantages of the process.
Q1. What are the causes of bad refining qualities of a raw sugar?
Q2. Describe the Talofloc (phosphor-defecation) process for the decolorisation of remelted
raws. Give the advantages and disadvantages of the processes.
Q3. Describe the decolorisation process of remelted raws by the “Ion Exchange Resin” process.
Give the advantages and disadvantages of the process.

31
Q2. Describe the Talofloc (phosphor-defecation) process for the decolorisation of remelted
raws. Give the advantages and disadvantages of the processes.
Q3. Describe with the help of a diagram the carbonation process (Using CO2 from the flue
gases of the chimney) for the decolorisation of remelted raws. Give the advantage and
disadvantages of the processes.
Q2. Describe the phosphor-defecation (Talofloc) process for the production of refined sugar
from the remelted raws.
Q3. What are the advantage and disadvantages of the following processes for the production of
refined sugar from the remelted raws?
(i) Talofloc (phosphor-defecation) process

(ii) Carbonation
(iii) Ion Exchange Resins

32
Q1. Why is the refining quality of a raw sugar so important for a refiner?
Q2. What are the causes of poor refining quality of a raw sugar?.
Q3. Describe the Talofloc process (Phosphor - defecation + Talofloc) for the production of
refined sugar from remelted raws. Give the advantage and disadvantages of the processes.
OR
Describe the carbonation process (with CO2 gas) for the production of refined sugar from
remelted raws. Give the advantage and disadvantages of the process.
Q4. Give the advantage and disadvantages of the sulphitation process for the production of
plantation white sugar from the cane juice.
Q5. Give the advantage and disadvantages of the ion exchange process (Resins) for the
production of refined sugar from remalted raws.

33
Q1. What are the steps to be taken to obtain a raw sugar of good refined quality?
Q2. Describe the sulphitation process for the production of plantation white sugar. What are the
advantages and disadvantages of this process?
Q3. Describe the Talofloc (Phosphor - defecation) process for the production of refined sugar
from remelted raws. What are the advantages and disadvantages of this process?

34

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Module 11: Sugar – Refining

Sugar Engineering and Manufacturing Training Team

Refining Qualities on Raw Sugar

All the material to be refined can be obtained from “A” massecuites.

Sugar Engineering and Manufacturing Training Team

Figure 1: Affination Step

Raw Sugar Quality Desired By the Refiner

Sugar Engineering and Manufacturing Training Team

Causes of Poor Refining Quality

Good mill sanitation

Appropriate boiling scheme

Good sugar boiling good purging in the centrifugals

Sugar Engineering and Manufacturing Training Team

Steps Top Be Taken To Obtain A Raw Sugar of Good Refining Quality

Good Mill Sanitation.

Sugar Engineering and Manufacturing Training Team

Good Purging In the Centrifugals

Sugar Engineering and Manufacturing Training Team

White Sugar Production (From Cane Sugar)

White sugars can be differentiated into:

Plantation White Sugar Colour (200 – 3000 ICUMSA@ 420 µm)

Plantation White Sugar

Juice carbonatation is not practiced any more.

Semi-Refined White Sugar

Talofloc Process (Described in Back-End Refinery at Belle Vue S.E.)

Sugar Engineering and Manufacturing Training Team

Advantages of the Process:

Cheap Reagent (Lime and Soda)

The plant is heavy and bulky (capital expenditure is high)

Description of the Process (See Fig.3)

Sugar Engineering and Manufacturing Training Team

Figure 3: Carbonatation of Melted Raws

Sugar Engineering and Manufacturing Training Team

Brix of Liquor 650

Sugar Engineering and Manufacturing Training Team

Bone Char Operation with a Fixed Bed

(Reference: Meade and Chen, 10th Edition, Page 459 – 474)

Ion Exchange Resins

Sugar Engineering and Manufacturing Training Team

Advantages of the Process:

High decolorisation rate

Ion Exchange Process

Back – End Refinery at Blle Vue S.E.

Sugar Engineering and Manufacturing Training Team

Talofoc Decolourisation and Clarification Proces Atr Belle Vue S.E.

The Process Has Four Stages:

Aeration of the reaction mixture

Description of the Process (See Fig.7)

700 pm Talofloc on solids

Sugar Engineering and Manufacturing Training Team

Temperature of heater is controlled y a temperature controller which actuates a steam

Addition of milk of time is controlled by a pH controller which actuates a splitter box or

All the contralised in a control console placed in an air-conditioned control room.

Advantages of the Process:

The use of Talofloc allows a considerable increase in the capacity of an existing

Sugar Engineering and Manufacturing Training Team

Disadvantage of the Process:

TALOFLOC at the rate of 700 ppm on solids

Powdered Activated Carbon Treatment Plant

Advantages of the Process:

Powdered activated carbon can be used only when required

Only a small stock chemical is required