52 



THE AGRICULTURAL NEWS. 



February 22. 1919. 



SUGAR INDUSTRY. 



SUGAR BY-PRODUCTS IN HAWAII. 

 At the annual meeting of the Hawaiian Sugar Planters' 

 Association. November 1918, the committee presented a 

 report on the by-products of the industry, wliich is published 

 in the Louisiana Planter, December 28. This subject has 

 already been noticed in previous issues of tbis journal, but it 

 is evident that the development and application of new uses 

 for the by-products of sugar manufacture must become a 

 subject of increasing interest. The manner in which it is 

 proposed to deal with these by-products in Hawaii gives a 

 good lead in this direction. 



The average crop of the Hawaiian Islands yields approxi- 

 mately -5,000,000 tons of cane. As by-products of the manu- 

 facture of sugar, there are annually in round figures: 



Tons 

 Megass, 23 per cent of the cane. .. .1,150 000 

 Press Cake. 2 J per cent, of the cane 112,.500 

 Molasses, 3 per cent of the cane. . . . 1-50,000 



MEGASS. At present the megass, with the exception of a 

 small amount for feed mixtures, is entirely used as fuel to 

 generate steam in the manufacture of sugar. Put to such use, 

 it has a value corresponding to the fuel which would have to 

 be used to replace it, should the megass be utilized for other 

 purposes. It requires 6 ft. megass to generate the same 

 amount of steam as 1 lb. of crude oil. One ton of megass 

 is equivalent to one barrel of oil. With oil at $2 a barrel, 

 megass is worth S2 per ton. 



At Olaa there is in process of erection a 500 h.p. paper 

 plant designed and to be equipped to manufacture from 

 megass, an asphalt roofing | paper, to be used as a paper 

 mulch for the suppression of weeds in the cane fields. This 

 plant will have a capacity of 16'5 tons of finished asphalt 

 paper per twenty-four hours, which will require 30 tons of 

 megass or about 10 per cent, ot the total produced per day. 

 It is 80 designed as to permit the production of roofing and 

 sheathing felts, tissue paper, wrapping paper, card and box 

 boards, should it be found desirable. The general method for 

 the manufacture of paper from megass is first to sift the 

 megass sis it comes from the niill> in order to remove some of 

 the pith; the megass i> then diges'.ed in two revolving drums, 

 where it is subjected to the action of steam-heat and milk of 

 'ime. Then it goes through the beaters, where the fibre is still 

 further separated. The pulp i.s next thrown on the drying 

 screens and passed through tlie mills, where it is further dried, 

 ^,nd pressed to the required thickness and width. The paper 

 is then .sa'Jirated with asphalt to the extent of 40 per cent. 

 ,f its toul weight 



It may be observed in this connexion that the pith 

 repaoved in ihe first instance may be utilized as a component 

 of Block food. 



i-RKSs ijAKE. This by-product is now used entirely for 

 fertilizing purposes, and there are available about 1 1 2,500 tons 

 each year. Should occa.Hion arifle whereby it became possible 

 to use this by- product for other purposes, it would be 

 essential to know the value of it ai* now used. Analysi.'j of 

 Ireas cake, as it Is put on the field, would indicate a value /jf 

 j.boUv |4 50 to 1^5 50 per tun, the true value can only be,- 

 determined by the results :>btaiDed. 



MOLAssBs. Possibly to West Indian readers,however, the 

 most interesting of the recommendations will be as t( the 

 method of dealing with molasses. It must be remembered 

 that the Hawaiian molasses is entirely the product of vacuum 

 pan factories. 



As fuel, a ton of molasses has about the same value as a 

 ton of megass or a barrel of oil. When burned for the potash 

 having a value of ??5 00 per unit, a ton of molasses is worth 

 approximately floOO per ton. 



A very interesting method for the manufacture of a 

 .substitute for gasoline has been developed and brought to a 

 practical application by Mr. Foster, Superintendent of the 

 Maui Agricultural Go's mill. 



It will doubtless be remembered by our readers that a simi- 

 lar substitute has been successfully manufactured in South 

 Africa during the last year or two under the name ot 

 'Natalite.' 



Motor alcohol, modified as a substitute for gasoline in an 

 ordinary gasoline engine, has been produced in considerable 

 quantity by the Maui Agricultural Co , and by them subjected 

 to a wide range of tests, all of which were successful in 

 showing a high degree of efficiency for the new fuel. 



It was found that not only was no carbon deposit formed, 

 but that the engine was rapidly cleaned from old carbon 

 deposits. The engines would run with less vibration, with less 

 lubricating oil, and at a uniformly, higher speed than the same 

 throttle opening would give on gasoline. 



It was also found that the engine would develop more 

 power than with an equal consumption of gasoline. 



Much of this is doubtless due to the elimination of the 

 carbon deposits which is caused by the formation of steam 

 from the water contained,in the alcohol and the water created 

 by the combustion, and necessarily results in the smoother 

 operation and higher efficiency of the engine. 



Formula No. 3, for completely denatured motor alcohol 

 which has been manufactured at Maui, is as follows : To 

 each 100 gallons of grain alcohol add not less than 5 gallons 

 of ether, 2 gallons of benzine, and 1 gallon of commercial 

 pyridine. 



The sulphuric ether is cheaply and easily produced, and 

 the cost of the process will be aflFected by the cost of the ether. 



No satisfactory data can be given as to the cost of 

 the alcohol. In the first place, the value placed upon the 

 molasses, is variable, and in the second place, the distillery 

 costs will depend upon its capacity and location. The beat 

 plan would probably be to run distilleries in connexion with 

 large factories. 



No estimates of the cost of the distillation will be com- 

 plete without considerhjg the fertilizing value of the 

 molasses, and it should not be forgotten that the refuse 

 liquor from a distillery will also contain the total pho.sphoric 

 acid and nitrogen values of the molasses. From this it 

 would appear that where arrangements can be made to 

 utilize the fertilizing value of the distillery refuse, that value 

 will considerably help in the profitable working of the process; 



It i.s inevitable th.it the time will come, sooner or later 

 when the l.ick of petroleum fuel will compel the use of alcohol 

 for internal combustion engines, and it is certain that kfa* 

 demands made by the war have brought that time appreciably 

 nearer. 



The total importation of gasoline and distillate into the 

 Territory w about '.),000,000 gallons annually, and the amount 

 of alcohol which can be produced from the wa.ste molasses is 

 Hppro.viinalely the same amount, so thit it is (juite within the 

 realm of possibility for the islands eventually to become inde- 

 pendent of the iiirtinkn'i for fuel for interoal combustion 

 engines. 



