The Potential Application of Ion Exclusion Chromatography for Additional Sucrose Recovery from Molasses

FIGURE 1 Scheme of a batch separation process. The resin is made by crosslinking divinyl benzene (DVB) with a polystyrene matrix, which contains sulphoriic groups for cation attachment. The resinsare manufactured as beads which, when packed in a column, provide interstitial spaces for the passage of large molecules. Generally, non-ionised smaller moleculessuch as sucrose, glucose and fructoseare able to enter the resin beads whereas ionised and/or large molecules such as colour will not be able to enter the resin matrix. These large molecules will then pass quickly through the interstitial spaces, while the smaller moleculeswilltake the longerroute through the resin matrix. This phenomenon is exploited to separate sucrose from all the other molasses constituents which are either of high molecular weight or possess charge. In other words, a sucrose-rich fraction is separated from a non-sucrose fraction. The former is usually about 80-90% pure and is used directly to produce white sugar in the beet industry.