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Sugar refinery
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Sugar refinery
A sugar refinery is a refinery which processes raw sugar from cane or sugar extracted from beets into white refined sugar.
Cane sugar mills traditionally produce raw sugar, which is sugar that still contains molasses, giving it more coloration (and impurities) than the white sugar which is normally consumed in households and used as an ingredient in soft drinks and foods. Raw cane sugar does not need refining to be palatable. It is refined for reasons such as health, color, and the requirement for a pure sugar taste. Raw sugar is stable for transport and can be taken from mills to locations for processing into white sugar. Cane sugar mills / factories often produce a partially refined product called Plantation (or Mill) White for their local market, but this is inferior to white sugar made by refineries.
Beet sugar factories can also produce raw sugar, but this has an unpleasant taste. There is no separate raw sugar stage to the process; the sugar extract from the beet is, after cleaning, crystallized directly into white sugar.
The origins of the art of refining sugar seem to stem from Khorasan in Persia. Next, the Venetians produced refined sugar, resembling sugar candy. In 1573, the first German sugar refinery was built in Augsburg. During the 17th century, the Dutch started their refineries, which soon dominated the European market. The risks involved in large refineries stimulated developments in the insurance industry.
In the early modern era (AD 1500 to 1800) the sugar refinery process consisted of some standard steps. First the raw sugar was put in a copper boiler and mixed with bullock's blood and lime-water. The mixture was then left to stand for a night in order to dissolve. In the morning, a fire was lit under the pan or boiler. The albumen of the blood then coagulated and entangled the mechanical impurities of the sugar, forming a scum that was constantly removed. The simmering was then continued till a sample of the mixture appeared transparent. It was then rapidly boiled down till such consistency that it could form threads between one's finger and thumb. At which point the fire was damped. The second step was granulation. For this, the syrup was transferred to a vessel called a cooler, where it was agitated with wooden oars till it granulated. The third step was to put the granulated sugar in molds.
The first sugar refineries were located in coastal cities throughout western Europe. They did not necessarily have to be in a port city, because at the time goods were generally transloaded from a ship onto a barge before reaching their destination. Sugar refineries are often located in heavy sugar-consuming regions such as North America, Europe, and Japan. Since the 1990s, many state-of-the art sugar refineries have been built in the Middle East and North Africa region, e.g. in Dubai, Saudi Arabia and Algeria. The world's largest sugar refinery company is American Sugar Refining with facilities in North America and Europe.
The sugar refineries that were built from about 1500 AD to 1800 did not require purpose built buildings. Ideally, they were located on a broad street along a broad canal with a good quay, so resources could be brought in at low cost by barge and by road. The refinery also had to stand somewhat free from other buildings. It required wind to dry the produce and to keep it from sweating, especially in Summer. The chimneys also had to significantly stick out above the surrounding buildings. From about 1800 the Industrial Revolution changed the refining process by introducing steam power and all kinds of machinery. It led to the construction of specialized building that could be recognized by having a large number of very shallow floors.
The pre-1800 refinery was extensively described in the Netherlands, because the Dutch Republic dominated the trade in and refining of sugar for a long time. In Holland, the ideal refinery was at least 150 Rijnland feet (0.3140 m) long and 30 feet wide. The warehouse of the refinery would be on the street/canal side. It had to be at least 30 feet wide, 40 feet long and 20 feet high, with enough natural light and two 10 feet doors to let pass 2000-3000 pound barrels. The warehouse needed a windlass for vertical transport and a scale to weigh at least 1,800 pounds. Ideally, the warehouse and the refinery were separate buildings, but with the high real estate prices in Holland, this was rare.
Hub AI
Sugar refinery AI simulator
(@Sugar refinery_simulator)
Sugar refinery
A sugar refinery is a refinery which processes raw sugar from cane or sugar extracted from beets into white refined sugar.
Cane sugar mills traditionally produce raw sugar, which is sugar that still contains molasses, giving it more coloration (and impurities) than the white sugar which is normally consumed in households and used as an ingredient in soft drinks and foods. Raw cane sugar does not need refining to be palatable. It is refined for reasons such as health, color, and the requirement for a pure sugar taste. Raw sugar is stable for transport and can be taken from mills to locations for processing into white sugar. Cane sugar mills / factories often produce a partially refined product called Plantation (or Mill) White for their local market, but this is inferior to white sugar made by refineries.
Beet sugar factories can also produce raw sugar, but this has an unpleasant taste. There is no separate raw sugar stage to the process; the sugar extract from the beet is, after cleaning, crystallized directly into white sugar.
The origins of the art of refining sugar seem to stem from Khorasan in Persia. Next, the Venetians produced refined sugar, resembling sugar candy. In 1573, the first German sugar refinery was built in Augsburg. During the 17th century, the Dutch started their refineries, which soon dominated the European market. The risks involved in large refineries stimulated developments in the insurance industry.
In the early modern era (AD 1500 to 1800) the sugar refinery process consisted of some standard steps. First the raw sugar was put in a copper boiler and mixed with bullock's blood and lime-water. The mixture was then left to stand for a night in order to dissolve. In the morning, a fire was lit under the pan or boiler. The albumen of the blood then coagulated and entangled the mechanical impurities of the sugar, forming a scum that was constantly removed. The simmering was then continued till a sample of the mixture appeared transparent. It was then rapidly boiled down till such consistency that it could form threads between one's finger and thumb. At which point the fire was damped. The second step was granulation. For this, the syrup was transferred to a vessel called a cooler, where it was agitated with wooden oars till it granulated. The third step was to put the granulated sugar in molds.
The first sugar refineries were located in coastal cities throughout western Europe. They did not necessarily have to be in a port city, because at the time goods were generally transloaded from a ship onto a barge before reaching their destination. Sugar refineries are often located in heavy sugar-consuming regions such as North America, Europe, and Japan. Since the 1990s, many state-of-the art sugar refineries have been built in the Middle East and North Africa region, e.g. in Dubai, Saudi Arabia and Algeria. The world's largest sugar refinery company is American Sugar Refining with facilities in North America and Europe.
The sugar refineries that were built from about 1500 AD to 1800 did not require purpose built buildings. Ideally, they were located on a broad street along a broad canal with a good quay, so resources could be brought in at low cost by barge and by road. The refinery also had to stand somewhat free from other buildings. It required wind to dry the produce and to keep it from sweating, especially in Summer. The chimneys also had to significantly stick out above the surrounding buildings. From about 1800 the Industrial Revolution changed the refining process by introducing steam power and all kinds of machinery. It led to the construction of specialized building that could be recognized by having a large number of very shallow floors.
The pre-1800 refinery was extensively described in the Netherlands, because the Dutch Republic dominated the trade in and refining of sugar for a long time. In Holland, the ideal refinery was at least 150 Rijnland feet (0.3140 m) long and 30 feet wide. The warehouse of the refinery would be on the street/canal side. It had to be at least 30 feet wide, 40 feet long and 20 feet high, with enough natural light and two 10 feet doors to let pass 2000-3000 pound barrels. The warehouse needed a windlass for vertical transport and a scale to weigh at least 1,800 pounds. Ideally, the warehouse and the refinery were separate buildings, but with the high real estate prices in Holland, this was rare.
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