On the shelves of modern stores you can see not only cane, but also beet sugar. This sweet ingredient has been widely used in cooking. It is used to prepare many dishes. After reading today's article, you will learn about the beneficial properties and production features of this product.
Brief historical background
The first attempts to draw attention to a sufficiently high sugar concentration in beets were made by the French botanist Olivier de Serre. Unfortunately, then his actions were unsuccessful and did not arouse interest among a wide range of people. And only many years later, in 1747, the German chemist Markgraf managed to get hard beet sugar. He reported this discovery during one of his next appearances, but his work was left without due attention.
Only in 1786, his work was continued by the Frenchman Charles Ahard. The main task of his agricultural experiments, carried out in a small estate near Berlin, was to find the best beet variety that is optimal for sugar production. After three decades, the results of his research were presented to the Prussian king. And in 1802, the first factory for the manufacture of this product was opened.
Structure
It should be noted that beet sugar is nothing but regular sucrose. When it enters the human body, it is instantly broken down into glucose and fructose. Subsequently, these substances are absorbed into the bloodstream and delivered to each cell, providing them with energy.
Due to the high rate of decomposition into individual components, sugar is an easily digestible carbohydrate. The energy value of one hundred grams of the product is 390 kilocalories.
Beneficial features
Those who do not know the color of unrefined beet sugar will be interested in the fact that this product is practically not eaten. First, it goes through a cleaning stage, due to which we get what we see on the shelves of our stores. Refined product refers to carbohydrates, which are valuable nutritional components that saturate our body with vital energy. Sucrose, which rapidly breaks down into two parts in the digestive tract, enters the bloodstream and spreads to all organs and tissues.
Glucose provides the bulk of energy costs. In addition, it supports the barrier function of the liver. Therefore, it is often recommended to be administered intravenously in case of poisoning and some other health problems. In addition, beet sugar is successfully used in medicine. It is used for the production of syrups, which are the basis for the manufacture of liquid medicines.
Product harm
Sugar contains a large number of empty calories that could be obtained from other sources. In contrast to this sweet sand, vitamins and trace elements are present in other products.
It should not be forgotten that beet sugar, consumed in unreasonably large quantities, poorly affects the condition of the teeth. This is due to the fact that many bacteria live in the oral cavity of a person, under the influence of which this product turns into acids that destroy enamel and contribute to tooth decay.
Production technology
Immediately, we note that unrefined beet sugar is made from the corresponding crop. Raw materials for its production are perishable products, therefore, processing plants are built in the immediate vicinity of plantations. Manufacturing technology consists of several stages. It includes extraction, purification, evaporation and crystallization.
Pre-washed beets are cut into small chips and sent to a diffuser. In it, sugar is extracted from the plant mass using hot water. As a result of this process, juice is obtained consisting of 15% sucrose. The remaining waste (beet pulp) can be used for feeding farm animals. Subsequently, the diffusion juice is fed to the saturator. There it combines with milk of lime. This is necessary to separate heavy impurities that settle to the bottom. Then the heated solution is treated with carbon dioxide and filtered. The result is the so-called purified juice, in which 50-65% sugar is present.
The resulting liquid is subjected to crystallization, carried out in a huge vacuum tank. The result of this process is massecuite. It is molasses mixed with sucrose crystals. To separate these components, this substance is subjected to centrifugation. Sugar obtained in this way does not need additional refining. It is fully suitable for subsequent use.
The remaining molasses is sent for evaporation, which results in less pure crystals, which are then dissolved and refined.