A CASE STUDY ON-

SUGAR INDUSTRY
WASTE
MANAGEMENT
 SUGAR INDUSTRY

● The sugar industry subsumes the production,processing

marketing of sugar. Globally most sugars is extracted from
sugarcane and beet.
● Sugar is an essential basis for soft drinks/sweetened
beverages,convenience foods,fast food,candy/sweets,
baking products and the respective industries.
● Around 460 million tonnes of sugar is produced every year
The largest producers are Brazil(72%),India(15%) and the
European Union(10%).
 Sugar Producing Countries
CountryTotal 2007/08 2008/09 2009/10 2010/11 2011/12
Brazil 31,600 31,850 36,400 38,350 35,750
India 28,630 15,950 20,637 26,650 28,300
European 15,614 14,014 16,687 15,090 16,740
union
China 15,898 13,317 11,429 11,199 11,840
Thailand 7,820 7,200 6,930 9,663 10,170
United 7,396 6,833 7,224 7,110 7,.153
states
Mexico 5,852 5,260 5,115 5,495 5,650
Russia 3,200 3,481 3,444 2,996 4,800
Pakistan 4,163 3,512 3,420 3,920 4,220
Australia 4,939 4,814 4,700 3,700 4,150
Other 38,424 37,913 37,701 37,264 39,474
Total 163,536 144,144 153,687 161,437 168,247
 PR0CESS DESCRIPTION

● The various steps involved for the production of sugar are :

1.Procurement of sugarcane.
2.Milling of sugarcane.
3.Juice Preparation.
4.Juice concentration.
5.Syrup processing and crystallization.
6.Sugar crystal seperation,Drying,Packaging and Molasses
handling.
7. Bagasse utilization.
● The Sugarcanes are cut into pieces and crushed in a
series of rollers to extract the juice, in the ‘mill house’. The
milk of lime is then added to the juice and heated, when all
the colloidal and suspended impurities are coagulated.
During this treatment, much of the colour is also removed.
● 1. Procurement of Sugarcane:
where the roots and green leaves are removed manually and the Sugarcane
is prepared for transportation to the factory. Depending on the location of the
field, the cane is transported to the factory by bullock carts, tractor trolleys
and trucks to the factory.

● 2.Milling of Sugarcane:
The Sugarcane is unloaded at the mill house by winch and crab on to the
cane carrier, which feeds the fiberizing system. Here the Sugarcane is
shredded into small pieces. The shredded Sugar cane is then squeezed
through a series of pressure milling rolls containing grooved surface. Weak
juice or water is added to last but one roller so that recovery of juice is of the
order 95-97%.
 3. Juice Preparation:
Double Sulphitation process is the latest process adopted for juice
clarification. In this process, juice is heated at 70°C and is treated with
lime and sulphur dioxide. The juice is adjusted to neutral pH and passed
to the heat exchanger to raise its temperature to the boiling point. It is
then sent to clarifier where the juice is clarified and then sent to multiple
effect evaporators. The sediment from the clarifier is sent to vacuum
filters. The juice mud is taken out as solid waste and the extracted juice is
mixed with raw juice.
4.Juice Concentration:
● The clarified juice is concentrated to about 65% solids from about 15%
solids before entering the first multiple effect evaporator sending steam in
the first evaporator. Vapours from the first evaporation are fed to the
second evaporator and so on.
Spent steam from the first evaporator is returned to the boiler for reuse as
feed water for steam generation. Spent steam from the second and third
evaporator is used for process, and vapours from the last evaporator are
condensed through condensers.
5. Syrup Processing and Crystallization:
The concentrated juice or syrup from the evaporator is again bleached by
passing sulphur dioxide through it and the pH of the syrup drops down to
about 5.4. It is then sent to the vacuum pan where the thickened syrup is
boiled for three to four times as per purity in order to extract the sucrose
content. It is then sent to crystallizers to deposit any additional sucrose
content on the crystals. Fine Sugar is used as seed crystals.
 6. Sugar Crystal Separation, Drying, Packing and Molasses
Handling:
● The Mixture of crystals and liquor, called ‘massecuite’, is sent to high-
speed centrifuges. The liquor is re-concentrated and cooled successively
to obtain more than one crops of crystals. The final mother liquor, called
‘Molasses’, which is still very rich in Sugar content is sent to steel storage
tanks. Molasses is sold to various distilleries and other users against
permit issued by excise department.
● The separated crystals are passed on to hopper conveyors where hot and
cold air is passed through the crystals. The appropriate size is dried and
sent to elevators. The elevators feed the grading system bins. The fine
crystals are reused for seeding. Finally the finished product is bagged and
stored in godowns.
 7. Bagasse Utilization:
● The pulp expelled after extraction of juice is called ‘Bagasse’. As it comes
out of the mill house, it contains about 50% moisture. A number of drying
processes have been tried in the industry but unfortunately none of these
were found industrially viable. Therefore, the wet Bagasse with 50%
moisture is carried to boiler house by Bagasse carrier. It is able to
generate about 2 kg of steam per kg on wet basis itself. With efficient
boilers coming in the market, the factories are able to save about 10-20%
Bagasse.
● The excess Bagasse is carried to Bagasse yard from where it is sold to
paper mills and other users. During the general cleaning or shut down,
Bagasse return carrier brings the Bagasse back to the boiler. A small
fraction is sent to bailing plant where Bagasse is compressed and tied by
G.I. wire to form small bails. The size of these bails is about 40 to 50
centimetre cube. The Bagasse can be stacked in the form of bails. This is
done very carefully as Bagasse is known to be susceptible to auto ignition.
By products from Sugarcane
 Solid Waste from Sugar industry
● There are two types of solid wastes obtained from sugar
industry:
1.Press Mud.
2.Bagasse.
 (i) Press Mud:
● The solid waste generated from filtre cloth and scum, is known
as press mud or filtre cake, can be used for filling low-lying area
with care not to pollute groundwater and considering its nutrient
value as manure for the agriculture fields. Table 15.1 shows
analysis of press mud or filtre cake.

● Wax from the press mud can be extracted and may be

recovered as a by-product. The recovered wax can be used in
manufacturing of shoe polish and carbon paper.
 (ii) Bagasse:
● Bagasse is another form of solid waste produced after crushing
shredded sugarcane and removing sugarcane juice. Bagasse
contributes about 0.33 tonne per tonne of sugarcane crushed.
● It has a calorific value of 1917 kcal/kg and, therefore, it is presently
used as a fuel for steam generation in sugar mills. However, bagasse
can produce 0.3 tonnes paper per tonne bagasse.
● Therefore, sugar mill can either manufacture paper or sell bagasse to
paper manufacturing units and earn some revenue. This is also a
profit oriented by-product from sugar mill.
 USES:

● Bagasse is usually combusted in furnance to produce

steam for power generation.
● Bagasse is also emerging as an attractive feedstock for
Bioethanol production.
● It is also utilized as raw material for production of paper
and feedstock for cattle.
 MOLASSES:
● It is a syrup left after the final stage of sugar
extraction.
● Obtained as the result of boiling of sugarcane juice.
● Two types of molasses-cane molasses and beet
molasses.
 WASTE WATER
TREATMENT OF
SUGAR INDUSTRY
● Waste water from sugar industry, if discharged without
treatment, causes pollution creates problem for both
Aquatic and terrestrial ecosystem.
● Also, Sugar industry waste water when not treated
completely produces unpleasant smell when released
into environment.
 Sources of waste water:
● Sugar industry waste waters are produced mainly by cleaning
operations.
● Washing of milling house floor, various division of boiling house like
evaporators,clarifiers,vaccum pans,centrifugation etc. generates
huge volume of waste waters.
● Periodical cleaning of Heat exhanger and evaporators with NaOH
and HCL to remove the scales on the tube surface contributes
organic and inorganic pollutant leading to waste waters.
● Leakages from pumps,pipelines,centrifuging house also contribute
to waste water produced.
● Except this waste water is also produced from boiler blow down
,spray pond overflow and from condenser cooling water which is
discharged as waste water when it gets contaminated with cane
juice.
● Sugar industry waste water is characterized by its brown
color,low pH ,high temperature,high BOD,high COD, odour
problem,total solids,and high percentage of dissolved
organic and inorganic matter
● Waste water from sugar industry generally contains
carbohydrates,nutrients,oil and grease,
chlorides,sulphates and heavy metals.
 TREATMENT METHODS

● Treatment of sugar industry waste water requires a process that

combines mechanical,chemical,and biological treatment
methods.
● There are three types of methods:
1.Biological Methods.
2.Physico-chemical Methods.
3.Electro-chemical Methods.
 Biological Methods
1.Aerobic Treatment:
● Aerobic biological treatment generally involves degradation of
organic in the occurrence of oxygen. Coventional aerobic
treatment includes activated sludge,tricking filters,aerated
lagoons,or a combination of all.
● Lagoons are used for sugar industry waste water treatment.
 2.Anaerobic treatment:
● Anaerobic treatment method of concentrated waste water
interms of pollutants is widely used method in the industries
● Its has several advantages over aerobic process which
includes lesser energy required;methane production due to
degradagtion of organic matter,which is a source of energy.
● Lesser sludge production,which indirectly reduces sludge
disposal costs.
● Sugar industry waste water are biodegradable except oil and
grease,because oils produce long chain fatty acids which
causes retardation in methane production.
 Physico-chemical Methods

● Coagulation/flocculation with organic coagulants and

adsorption are widely used for the removal of
suspended,colloidal and dissolved solids from waste
waters.
● Generally,coagulation/flocculation is used in the primary
purification of industrial waste water.
● In coagulation process insoluble particles and or dissolved
organic matrials collect to be larger and are removed by
sedimentation/filtration stages.
 Electro-chemical treatment

● Electrochemical treatment process is an emerging waste water

treatment technology.
● Electrochemical method involves:
1.Electro-oxidation.
2.Electro-coagulation.
3.Electro-floatation.
● In electro-oxidation treatment:
Organic materials are oxidized to carbondioxide and water
or other oxides by electrochemically generated reactive
oxygen and or oxidizing agent.
● In electro-coagulation treatment:
Involves generation of anode material hydroxides and poly
hydroxides which removes the organic by coagulation.
● In electro-floatation treatment:
Removes pollutants with the help of buoyant gase bubbles
generated during electrolysis,which take with the pollutant
materials to the surface of the liquid body.
WASTE UTILIZATION OF
SUGAR INDUSTRY
● Wastes from sugar industry are,
1.Sugarcane tops.
2.Bagasse.
3.Molasses.
4.Press Mud.
5.Waste water.
 SUGARCANE TOPS:
● It is mainly used for fuel production and animal feed.
● It contains 85% dry matter,5.5% of crude protein.
BAGASSE:
● Lignin from bagasse is used in fibre industry.
● Cellulose used as a material for manufacturing of pulp and
paper.
● Fuel for electricitry production.
● Ethanol production.
 MOLASSES:
● Production of bio-Ethanol.
● Principle ingredient in distillation of rum.
● As additive in livestock feed.
● Source for yeast production.
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