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ARS Home » Southeast Area » New Orleans, Louisiana » Southern Regional Research Center » Commodity Utilization Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #73979
Title: DECOMPOSITION OF SUCROSE AND FORMATION OF SUGAR DEGRADATION PRODUCTS IN REFINERY LIQUORS ACROSS TALO(TM) CLARIFICATION

Author
item Eggleston, Gillian
item Pepperman Jr, Armand
item CLARKE, MARGARET - SPRI

Submitted to: Sugar Processing Research Conference Proceedings
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 6/30/1997
Publication Date: N/A
Citation: N/A

Interpretive Summary: Sucrose decomposition and decomposition products formed across a cane sugar refinery's TALO -clarification process were studied. An accurate carbohydrate analysis technique, ion chromatography, was used to measure sucrose, glucose and fructose levels, as well as the formation of larger carbohydrate molecules named oligosaccharides. Oligosaccharides were shown to have the most potential to accurately measure sucrose decomposition in the refiner process. Conventional sugar refinery analysis measurements were reported as well as the results from a full statistical analysis of the data.

Technical Abstract: Sucrose chemical loss and degradation product formation across a cane sugar refinery's TALO-clarification process were investigated. Kinetic samples of sweet water, melt (washed sugar liquor), reaction tank and clarified liquors were obtained hourly over four periods of 7 hours each. Each 7 hour sampling period was separated by an interval of one week. Ion chromatography with integrated pulsed amperometric detection (IC-IPAD) ccurate carbohydrate analysis technique, was used to monitor sucrose levels, the formation and destruction of glucose and fructose and the formation of oligosaccharides across the process. Conventional sugar refinery analysis measurements for monitoring sucrose losses, i.e., pol (at 589 and 880 nm), color and pH changes were determined and compared to the more accurate ion chromatography techniques. Very high correlations (r greater than .95) between polarizations measured at 589 and 880nm existed for the sweet water, melt and clarified liquor samples, whereas the correlation (r equals .868) for the reaction tank liquors was lower indicating that high turbidity interferes with "pol 880nm" measurements. A full statistical analysis of the data, using both correlation and analysis of variance techniques, is reported.