MINIMISING POST-HARVEST BIOLOGICAL LOSSES OF SUCROSE BY APPLICATION OF ORGANO-SULFUR BASED BIOCIDE DURING MILLING OF CANE

摘要

SUCROSE losses after the harvest of sugarcane and during the subsequent milling operation are one of the most serious problems in many sugar processing mills in India. The sucrose losses are as high as 10.0 kg per tonne cane ground, depending upon the nature of cane variety, time lag from harvest to mi/ling, and ambient temperature. The loss profile of some commercial cane varieties grown in a sub-tropical region was evaluated based on their Commercial Cane Sugar (CCS)%, invert sugar, dextran and acidity value. Biological losses of sucrose during milling were assessed in a sugar mill by estimating the rise in invert sugars, acidity and dextran from primary to mixed juice. A rapid action biocide-eum-invertase inhibitor, organosulfur (dithiocarbamate) based formulation was mist sprayed continuously on prepared cane (@ 10 ppm on cane), and quality parameters of primary and mixed juice were evaluated at periodic intervals. In one sugar mill, invert sugars, titrable acidity, and dextran /100 brix in primary juice were 6.66, 18.97 and 2566 and, in mixed juice, 8.85, 18.77 and 1733 before biocide treatment. The sugar recovery at this stage was 9.30% cane. These quality parameters, after 2 hours of continuous biocide spraying on prepared cane, were 4.20, 17.12, 2435 in primary and 4.92, 15.18,414 in mixed juice, respectively. There was appreciable reduction in biological losses with an increase in sugar recovery of 0.2 units. Similar treatment in an another sugar mill for a period of seven days showed drastic reduction in biological losses with over 0.5 unit increase in sugar recovery.