May 1908.] 



443 



Edible Products. 



It has frequently been noticed that 

 citrate dries with difficulty when it has 

 been so handled as to produce a plas- 

 tered surface on the lumps. The press 

 has little tendency in this direction, but 

 careless handling may accentuate this 

 condition. Citrate which comes from 

 the centrifugal is in. a dry pulverulent 

 state in which it dries rapidly, and the 

 resultant dried citrate is freed from 

 lumps, and is softer and more friable 

 than that which had been pressed. 



The advantages to be gained by the 

 use of the centrifugal may be summed 

 up as follows :— 



a. Convenient and rapid handling. 



b. Rapid and thorough removal of 

 water. 



c. Convenient washing. 



d. More rapid drying in drier, and 

 consequent saving of time and fuel. 



e. Better condition of finished citrate. 



Where citrate of lime is made on a 

 large scale I have no doubt that the use 

 of the centrifugal instead of the press 

 is to be recommended, for it should be 

 found very materially to improve the 

 conditions of working. — West Indian 

 Bulletin Vol. VIII, No.' 2, 1907. 



CONCENTRATED LIME JUICE AND 

 CITRATE OP LIME. 



The following information as to me- 

 thods of preparation of concentrated 

 lime juice and manufacture of citrate 

 of lime is given in continuation of the 

 articles on lime growing, etc., that ap- 

 peared in numbers of the Agricultural 

 News (Vol. VI. p. 414; and Vol, p. 14) :— 



Concentrated Lime Juice. 



Lime juice for concentration should, 

 when leaving the mill, be carefully 

 strained in order to remove allseeds, and 

 as much pulp as possible before it is 

 run into vats. It is then placed in a still 

 in order to obtain the oil, and after- 

 wards run to the tayches to be con- 

 centrated. It has lately been shown 

 (West Indian Bulletin Vol, VIII, p. 171), 

 that lime juice, carefully strained and 

 settled after distillation and before con- 

 centration, has obtained a special mar- 

 ket and commands higher prices than 

 ordinary concentrated juice. 



Lime juice is usually concentrated be- 

 fore shipment to the citric acid makers 

 in order to reduce bulk. It is usual to 

 reduce at the rate 600 gallons of raw 

 55 



lime juice to 50 gallons of the concen 

 trated product. This is concentrating 

 at the rate of 12 to 1. Some 

 estates, however, concentrate 10 to 1 and 

 others 9 to 1. Even with low concen- 

 tration there is a considerable loss of 

 acid. 



The juice is shipped to New York or 

 London in hogsheads of 52 gallons, where 

 it is tested and paid for according to 

 the citric acid contents. 



Planters can now test their own lime 

 juice in the boiling house, and thereby 

 save a considerable destruction of citric 

 acid during concentration, by means of 

 citrometer an ordinary specific gravity 

 hydrometer. A description of a scale 

 prepared by the Hon. Francis Watts, 

 C.M.G.,Sc, for use in ascertaining the 

 strength of solutions of citric^acid and of 

 lime juice will be found in the West 

 Indian Bulletin, (Vol. V, pp. 238-9), 

 while a similar citrometer is described 

 in the Agricidtural News (Vol. VI. p. 

 149). 



Care should be taken to remove as 

 much of the impurities as possible, and 

 lime juice should never be concentrat- 

 ed in iron tayches, 



A carefully prepared juice, testing 100 

 to 105 oz. per gallon is a black, heavy, 

 but not dense liquid- When no care is 

 taken to strain or settle the juice, the 

 product is as thick as molasses at the 

 same degree of concentration. 



When raw juice is prepared for ship- 

 ment, it should be run to the setting 

 vats through earthenware pipes, for 

 it should never be allowed to come in 

 contact with any metal. 



The concentration of lime juice is 

 carried out in open copper tayches, 

 but it been suggested that concentra- 

 tion in copper or wooden vessels fitted 

 with steam coils would be an improve- 

 ment over the present system. Now 

 however, that the manufacture of 

 citrate of lime has been successfully 

 undertaken, it is doubtful whether any 

 effort will be made at improvement in 

 the present system of concentrating 

 juice. 



For boiling down the juice very con- 

 siderable quanties of fuel are required 

 and on estates where fuel is scarce, 

 it has recommended that quick-growing 

 species of Eucalyptus might be advan- 

 tageously planted in odd corners of the 

 estates. Once established, they could 

 be cut over every two or three years, 

 whereas native trees once cut down, 

 are not ready for cutting again under 

 at least ten years. 



