Sugar & Syrup Pretreatment: Rethinking Sugar Refining with PHILOS Megaflux-CRM

Sugar refining and syrup production are under increasing pressure: markets demand higher clarity, factories demand lower OPEX, and equipment suppliers demand cleaner feeds to keep evaporators and RO units running at design capacity.

Yet, most plants still depend on chemical-heavy clarification, lime, flocculants, carbon, and sulfur, methods that were designed decades ago.

They work… but at a cost. Sludge generation. High consumables. Variable product color. Frequent CIP. And persistent fine particulates and starch that continue to foul downstream units.

However, delivering cleaner, more stable syrups while reducing operational costs is possible by shifting from chemistry-driven clarification to membrane-driven clarification.

Conventional Pretreatments Challenges

Current approaches introduce several drawbacks:

• Heavy chemical consumption (lime, sulfur, activated carbon)

• Incomplete removal of ultrafine solids

• Color precursor carryover → higher carbon usage

• Evaporator & RO fouling

• Frequent adjustments, variable results

• Significant sludge generation & waste handling

These inefficiencies directly impact uptime, energy consumption, and final syrup quality.

Ceramic Membranes Change the Game

PHILOS Megaflux-CRM ceramic filtration and ultrafiltration bring a level of process stability and robustness that traditional sugar pretreatment cannot match.

Instead of depending on reaction chemistry and settling behavior, which fluctuate with feed quality, season, and sugar variety, ceramic membranes apply a physical barrier (0.01–1 µm) that consistently removes:

• Suspended solids

• Colloids & ultrafines

• Starch bodies

• Early-stage color precursors

The result is a filtration step that acts the same on Monday morning as it does on Friday night, regardless of whether the feed is cane juice, beet extract, or glucose–fructose syrup.

Image 1. Conventional Treatment vs. Ceramic Filtration Pretreatment

PHILOS Megaflux-CRM Improves the Process

By integrating ceramic MF/UF as an upstream clarification step, refiners gain:

1. Higher Clarity & Stability

• 99% turbidity removal

• ~80% reduction of starch and ultrafines

• Significantly less fouling downstream

2. Better Color Management

• 15–20% reduction in color precursors

• Lower activated carbon consumption

• More consistent final product color

3. Operating Reliability

• Stable flux even in viscous high-solid juice

• Resilient to seasonal feed variation

• Tolerant to aggressive CIP/SIP cycles (chemical + thermal)

4. Long-term Economic Benefit

• Reduced chemical footprint

• Lower sludge volumes

• Extended equipment life (evaporator, ion exchange, RO)

Image 2. Ceramic Filtration in Sugar and Syrup Processing

Engineered for the Food & Beverage Environment

The Megaflux-CRM line is designed specifically for high-solid, high-color, biologically active feed streams seen in:

• Cane & beet sugar mills

• Glucose–fructose syrup production

• Starch-rich industrial sweeteners

• Specialty syrups & beverage bases

Robust α-Al₂O₃ and ZrO₂ filtration layers ensure:

• Long service life

• Excellent fouling resistance

• Full compatibility with downstream carbon or RO

• Stable operation under thermal and chemical stress

Plants that have adopted ceramic MF/UF in the sugar industry report:

• Lower OPEX: less lime, sulfur, carbon, and sludge disposal

• Higher uptime: fewer shutdowns, smoother RO/evaporator operation

• Improved syrup brightness: stable turbidity, reduced color

• Sustainable operations: cleaner process, reduced effluent load

Applying Megaflux-CRM to your processes is an upgrade path toward a more predictable, scalable, and cost-efficient production line.

Curious About Implementing Ceramic MF in Your Line?

PHILOS can support feasibility evaluation, pilot design, and full-scale deployment using our Megaflux-CRM ceramic membrane platform.

Let’s explore how smarter pretreatment can directly improve your syrup quality, plant uptime, and operating cost.

📧 info@pmbr.co.kr 🌐 www.pmbr.co.kr

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