Sugar beet processing

Practical solutions

A sugar factory based on SUSEP technology is different from a sugar factory operating on a conventional processing line. The main difference is that all the equipment between the diffusion station and vacuum thickeners - crystallizers has been replaced by one common installation - a filtration station using ceramic membranes.

There are also differences in the diffusion unit, which is equipped with measurement of sugar in the diffusion juice, modern feeding and uniform dosing of the extractant. The diffusion station is equipped with a buffer tank, which serves not only as a backup storage of diffusion juice, but also as a node that equalizes the concentration of sugar and regulates the temperature of the outgoing sugar-containing juice.

The diffusion juice membrane purification system consists of three-level filtration. The process is divided into three filtration levels and has different filtering elements. Microfiltration, ultrafiltration and nanofiltration filter elements have different densities and porosities. By default, all sugar factories are equipped with a single filtration unit. If desired by the customer, it is possible to complete with a double equipment for filtration , which serves as a replaceable one and allows you to extend the service life of filter elements by 20-30%.

With demand and sufficiently high productivity, in addition to sugar, a number of additional products can be produced at medium and large rated capacity plants. In this case, additional membrane filters are installed to extract specific products. These filters work independently of the main production line and do not affect the quantity and quality of the sugar produced. By the filtration method, separated products are processed on special equipment that is supplied separately. The production of additional products requires both technical and economic assessment of the possibilities. Beet pulp and depleted molasses in the SUSEP technology are used as raw materials for the production of a wide range of additional products.

Evaporators - thickeners play an equally important role in the sugar production process. These units, by the method of water evaporation, thicken the sugar-containing juice to a concentration of sucrose that is already suitable for the further crystallization process. Of all types of evaporators, falling film evaporators are widely used today. This equipment has a specific design and differs from shell and tube heat exchangers. In plate-type evaporators, a coil, usually made of copper or aluminum, is embedded in the plate in such a way as to form a flat surface. Externally, the plate evaporator looks like a single plate, but inside it there are several turns of a metal tube through which liquids flow. The advantage of plate type evaporators is that they are more rigid, since the outer plate provides greater safety. The outer plate also helps to increase the heat transfer from the metal tube to the treated substance. In addition, plate type evaporators are easy to clean and can be manufactured inexpensively. The heat exchanger consists of a frame plate (head), a pressure plate (pusher), a bearing rod, a lower rod and a column. Tie bolts are used to press the plates together. This depends on the type of heat exchanger and may differ in some applications. The plate package consists of plates with a recess along the edge of the plate and around the holes. The number of plates, as well as the size and dimensions depend on the required thermal power. Depending on the application, stainless steel or titanium plates can be used. A special gasket is held in the groove provided in the plates. The purpose of this gasket is to prevent mixing of the medium and leakage to the outside. Today, plate evaporators with falling film are the best solution for increasing productivity, saving steam and reducing steam temperature.

Like any production, sugar production is highly dependent on the sale of products. In this case, the packaging of the product plays a very important role. In practice, there are three ways to sell products. Sugar can be sold in loose form, packaged in wholesale packages and packaged in retail packages. Each option is selected individually, depending on the production capacity of the sugar factory and the sales market. Large sugar factories most often sell sugar in loose form or packaged in soft containers, also called Big-Beg. Less often it is packaged in polypropylene bags of 25 kg or 50 kg. Factories of medium and small capacity most often pack their products in woven polypropylene bags of 25 kg or 50 kg and retail packaging of 1 kg. In rare cases, sugar is packaged in smaller bags - bags of "sticks". To choose the optimal solution, first of all it is necessary to analyze the market. It is equally important to take into account the fact that appropriate storage facilities are required for sugar storage.

Recommended packaging types depending on the capacity of the sugar factory:

by sugar beet (TBD)

(50-500 tons)

(1000-3000 tons)

(5000-12000 tons)

Main parameters

Unlike the traditional technology of sugar production from sugar beet, where beet juice contains 14...17% of solids, according to SUSEP technology, the content of solids in sugar-containing juice is more demanding and amounts to 15 ± 0.1%. This concentration of dry substances is achieved by means of a diffusion plant in which the supply of extractant, that is, feed water, is regulated using installed sensors and a special algorithm. In the diffusion process, "soft" water is used, i.e. specially filtered water at water treatment plants, where calcium salts are removed from the water and the concentration of iron decreases. The uniform concentration of solids in the sugar-containing juice ensures the stability and efficiency of the filtration process, which significantly reduces water consumption, reduces sugar losses and increases productivity.

The model of the SUSEP filtration plant and the number of installations, as well as technical characteristics depend on the installed design nominal capacity of the sugar plant in terms of the volume of processed raw materials per day. The main parameter is the hourly volume of filtered sugar-containing solution, i.e. diffusion juice, the dry matter content of which is 15 ± 0.1%. Since the process of producing sugar-containing juice, i.e. the quantity and quality of the diffusion juice is controlled using a PLC and a special algorithm, depending on the dry matter content in a certain volume of the main, processed raw materials, the volume of juice produced and fed to the filter unit primarily depends on the concentration of dry matter. The tables show the models and characteristics of filtration plants depending on the performance class of the sugar factory. The number of active filtration units, i.e. modules, depends on the installed nominal capacity of the sugar factory.

• Small capacity
• Medium capacity
• Large capacity

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