Abstract

This invention provides a method for the purification of cane juice to produce a finished product of very high quality. This purification process and general concept differs from existing cane juice purification schemes in that traditional methods either produce crystalline raw sugar or a liquid product commonly referred to as high test or fancy molasses. The processing of the cane juice generally comprises the steps of:(a) pretreating the cane juice to remove any soil or foreign matter and substantially reducing the total cation concentration of the cane juice;(b) hydrolyzing the pretreated cane juice to a desired degree;(c) purifying the hydrolyzed juice without precipitation or crystallization of raw sugar by subjecting the solution obtained in step (b) to gross demineralization and decolorization; and(d) concentrating the purified solution obtained in step (c) to obtain a pure odorless finished sugar product which meets or exceeds existing standards for pure sugar.Preferably, these steps are carried out by:(e) acidifying fresh raw sugar cane juice to a pH lower than its naturally occurring pH (e.g. a pH of 2 to 5 or less) and heating the acidified juice at a temperature ranging from between about 40° and 95° C. (preferably 60° to about 80° C. for a period of time sufficient to convert the desired amount of cane juice to glucose and fructose;(f) adjusting the pH of the product of step (e) to about 5.2 to form a floc;(g) separating the floc from the juice and passing the juice through a filter aid to form a clear solution;(h) subjecting the clear solution to gross demineralization and decolorization by passing the solution sequentially through a decolorizer cation and anion exchange resin;(i) passing the solution obtained in step (h) through a carbon, bone char and/or carbonaceous adsorbant resins filter to remove cane flavors and odors;(j) passing the effluent obtained in step (i) over a cation and anion exchange resin; and(k) evaporating or concentrating the effluent of step (j) to the desired solids levelwhereby a clear, colorless and odorless liquid finished product is obtained which meets or exceeds standards for pure sugar solutions.

Other References

• Meade-Chen; Cane Sugar Handbook; 10th Ed.; pp. 359-377; 1977; John Wiley & Sons Inc