30 



THE CUBA REVIEW 



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centrifugals. It is run into these machines charge by charge and the crystals of 

 sugar are separated from the molasses. Each charge of a centrifugal, usually forty 

 inches in diameter, gives nearly a bag of sugar. This is strictly "first sugar" and 

 the molasses is "first molasses". The first molasses is pumped to tanks above the 

 pan floor where it is heated and diluted with water to a density of 30° Beaume, and 

 then run into storage tanks on the pan floor to be used in making crystallizer sugar. 



When sugar is boiled for the crystallizers the grain is made with meladura so as 

 to have a good nucleus. A pan is run up about two-thirds full and half of the mass 

 is cut over to another pan, making two pans one-third full, which is sufficient grain to 

 build on. Diluted first molasses is boiled on this grain until the pan is filled, then 

 it is discharged into crystallizers which are of the same capacity as the vacuum pan. 

 The length of time this massecuite should remain in the crystallizer depends on the 

 kind of crystallizer and the grade of the massecuite. At some mills it requires from 

 four to five days to get the best results. These crystallizers revolve slowly and as 

 they cool down the grain continues to grow until they reach the atmospheric tempera- 

 ture. This process might be said to be a mere continuation of the vacuum pan work, 

 though it is much more economical and satisfactory than completing the work in the 

 pan, a better separation of the grains from the molasses, and a better polarizing 

 sugar being obtained. The crystallizer sugar gives an average polarization of 96° 

 and sells as first sugar. 



The crystallizers are situated above the centrifugals, and the massecuite when 

 ready for drying is handled in the same manner as the first massecuite, described 

 above. The molasses from the crystallizer massecuite is called "second molasses", 

 and is pumped to the storage tanks on the pan floor where it is heated to dissolve the 

 fine grains, if any, before being drawn into the vacuum pan again. This molasses, 

 according to its sucrose, is used the same as the first molasses, being boiled back until 

 no more sugar can be economically obtained, when it is sold as "final molasses" or 

 "Black Strap". 



