LQ4 Sugar Industry Flashcards
What are the types of sugar
White, brown, liquid
The most commonly used and well-known sugar
“Regular” white granulated sugar
Just white granulated sugar, ground into a fine powder and sifted
Confectioners/powdered sugar
Smaller then granulated sugar, its size preventing it from settling at the bottom of surfaces
Fruit sugar
Bigger than granulated sugar, coming from the crystallization of molasses-rich syrups with a high sucrose content
Coarse sugar
The smallest of all the white sugars, making it extremely easy to dissolve
Superfine sugar
A bit finer than fruit sugar, was developed specifically for baking
Baker’s special sugar
can be both
large or fine
crystals;
mainly used in
baking to
sprinkle on top
Sanding sugar
made from directly
boiling a brown
sugar syrup or
mixing white
granulated sugar
with different
molasses
Light/dark brown sugar
is partially
processed,
retaining more
naturally present
molasses
Turbinado sugar
unrefined cane
sugar wherein
the molasses has
not been
removed
Muscovado sugar
Less moist and clumpy than regular brown sugar
Free-flowing brown sugar
white granulated
sugar dissolved
in water in a 1:1
ratio of sugar
and water
Liquid sugar
sugar that comes
from the process
of splitting glucose
and fructose; is
sweeter than
white sugar
Invert sugar
What are the raw materials of sugar?
Sugar cane, beet, calcium hydroxide, water
After harvesting, the sugarcane or sugar beets
are transported to the processing plant, where
they undergo a thorough cleaning process. This
is done by placing them in rotating drums or on
conveyor belts while spraying water to remove
mud and other impurities before extraction.
Cleaning
In this stage, the cane’s hard structure is broken down to
extract juice. Shredders or revolving knives are used
along with three-roller mills. The cane passes through
multiple conveyor belts for maximum juice extraction,
with water sprayed before each pass to aid the process.
The leftover fibrous material after juice extraction is
called bagasse, which is used as a fuel source for steam
and energy generation within the factory.
Miller
To concentrate the juice, water content is
reduced through evaporation. The juice is
processed in a multiple-effect evaporator
system (typically with five evaporators), where
about 70% of the water is removed.
Evaporator
To form sugar crystals, further water reduction
is required. The juice is heated in vacuum pans
until it reaches supersaturation. Small sugar
grains are introduced as seed crystals to
facilitate crystallization. The mixture is
transferred to crystallization tanks for
controlled growth of sugar crystals
Crystallizer
Once crystallization is complete, the sugar
crystals are separated from the remaining syrup
(molasses) using centrifuges. A centrifuge is a
machine that separates substances based on
their density by spinning them at high speeds
Centrifuge
In the dryer, the freshly centrifuged sugar is
exposed to hot air to remove any remaining
moisture. This process ensures that the sugar
crystals reach the desired low moisture content.
The drying system prevents clumping and enhances
storage stability. The dried sugar is then cooled
before being packaged or further refined.
Dryer
Clarification removes impurities from the
extracted juice. The process involves adding milk
of lime (calcium hydroxide) to neutralize organic
acids present in the juice. The solution is then
heated to approximately 95°C, causing
coagulation and sedimentation of impurities,
which are removed as “mud.
Clarifyer
