22 



The two processes being identical up to the treatment of the sirup, 

 this was the point chosen for the separation of the work. 



The precipitating tanks are provided with an equalizing valve, by 

 means of which the sirup obtained from a given amount of cane, after 

 being thoroughly mixed, may be divided into two equal portions. By 

 this method any loss which may occur between the cane carrier and the 

 precipitation tanks is equally divided between the two sets of experi- 

 ments. 



For uniformity in the statements of the work all experiments by~ the 

 ordinary process are designated by the letter " A " and those by the 

 alcohol process by " B." 



After dividing the sirup into two equal parts, that for the ordinary 

 process was pumped directly to the pan tanks. The pan work in all 

 experiments was conducted under as nearly the same conditions as pos- 

 sible. 



Experiments were made on a small scale to ascertain the volume of 

 alcohol required for the treatment of the sirup. A sufficient volume of 

 alcohol is indicated by the prompt deposition of the pecipitate. This 

 condition is essential to a rapid and thorough nitration of the sirup. 



These experiments led to the use of a volume of alcohol equal to that 

 of the fdrup, provided the density of the latter is approximately 54.3 

 Brix (30 Baume). A larger volume of alcohol would be necessary with 

 a more dilute sirup. 



After the first eight sets of experiments the work with the ordinary 

 process was discontinued. These parallel experiments caused many 

 delays in the work, and would soon have resulted in a complete block- 

 ade of the hot room. It was invariably necessary to run first masse- 

 cuites, made by the ordinary process, into wagons and keep them warm 

 several days before centrifugaling. A peculiar flat crystal formed in 

 massecuites of this description, which was very difficult to free from the 

 molasses. 



The sugars were not washed in the centrifugal. 



Several preliminary trials were made to test the machinery and 

 aquaint the workmen with their duties. No record was kept of the 

 work, with the exception of that tabulated in the following pages under 

 the heading Experiment No. 1. After the preliminary trials of the bat- 

 tery it was decided to no longer return the skimmings to the cells. In 

 practical work on a large scale the loss of sugar in the skimmings would 

 be very small, hence in these experiments the skimmings were thor- 

 oughly settled, the clear juice drawn off, and the tank bottoms calcu- 

 lated back to cane. 



The high dilution of the diffusion juices is due to emptying the battery 

 after each experiment, which necessitates the use of a large quantity of 

 water to remove the sugar from the last ten cells of chips. 



