Sugarcane is any of six to thirty-seven species (depending on taxonomic system) of tall perennial A perennial plant or perennial is a plant that lives for more than two years. When used by gardeners or horticulturalists, applies specifically to winter hardy perennial herbaceous plants. Scientifically, woody plants like shrubs and trees are also perennial in their habit grasses Poaceae is a family in the Class Liliopsida (the monocots) of the flowering plants. Plants of this family are usually called grasses, or, to distinguish them from other graminoids, true grasses; the shrub- or tree-like plants in this family are called bamboo (there are also herbaceous, non-woody bamboos). There are about 600 genera and some 9,000 of the genus Saccharum (family Poaceae Poaceae is a family in the Class Liliopsida (the monocots) of the flowering plants. Plants of this family are usually called grasses, or, to distinguish them from other graminoids, true grasses; the shrub- or tree-like plants in this family are called bamboo (there are also herbaceous, non-woody bamboos). There are about 600 genera and some 9,000, tribe Andropogoneae Andropogoneae is a tribe of grasses widespread throughout tropical and temperate regions. They use C4 carbon fixation physiology. This tribe is commonly referred to as the sorghum tribe. Genera belonging to this tribe include: Andropogon, Bothriochloa, Chrysopogon, Coix, Dicanthium, Saccharum and Themeda. Occurrence of this grass is abundant in). Native to warm temperate to tropical regions of Asia Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.6% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 4 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population. During the 20th century Asia's population nearly quadrupled, they have stout, jointed, fibrous stalks that are rich in sugar Sugar is an informal term for a class of edible crystalline carbohydrates, mainly sucrose, lactose, and fructose characterized by a sweet flavor. In food, sugar almost exclusively refers to sucrose, which primarily comes from sugar cane and sugar beet. Other sugars are used in industrial food preparation, but are usually known by more specific, and measure two to six meters (six to nineteen feet) tall. All sugar cane Cane are either of two genera of tall, perennial grasses with flexible, woody stalks from the family Poaceae that grow throughout the world in wet soils. They are related to and may include species of bamboo. The genus Arundo is native from the Mediterranean region to the Far East. Arundinaria is found in the New World. In English, the word " species interbreed, and the major commercial cultivars A cultivar is a cultivated variety of a plant that has been deliberately selected for specific desirable characteristics . When propagated correctly, the plants of a particular cultivar retain their special characteristics are complex hybrids In biology and specifically genetics, hybrid has several meanings, all referring to the offspring of sexual reproduction.

Today, sugarcane is grown in over 110 countries. In 2008 an estimated 1,743 million metric tons The tonne or metric ton (U.S.), also referred to as a metric tonne, is a unit of mass equal to 1,000 kg (2,204.62262 lb) or approximately the mass of one cubic metre of water at four degrees Celsius. It is sometimes abbreviated as mt in the United States, but this conflicts with other SI symbols. The tonne is not a unit in the International System were produced worldwide, with about 50 percent of production occurring in Brazil and India.[1]

Sugar cane products include table sugar, Falernum Falernum is a sweet syrup used in Tropical and Caribbean drinks. It contains flavors of almond, ginger and/or cloves, and lime, and sometimes vanilla or allspice. It is used in cocktails in a manner similar to orgeat syrup or drunk on the rocks. The syrup form can be alcoholic or non-alcoholic. The consistency is thick, the color can be white to, molasses Molasses is a viscous byproduct of the processing of sugar cane or sugar beets into sugar. The word molasses comes from the Portuguese word melaço, which ultimately comes from mel, the Latin word for "honey". The quality of molasses depends on the maturity of the sugar cane or sugar beet, the amount of sugar extracted, and the method of, rum Rum is a distilled alcoholic beverage made from sugarcane by-products such as molasses and sugarcane juice by a process of fermentation and distillation. The distillate, a clear liquid, is then usually aged in oak and other barrels, cachaça Cachaça is a liquor made from fermented sugarcane. It is the most popular distilled alcoholic beverage in Brazil. It is also known as aguardente (aguardiente), pinga, caninha or other names. Cachaça is mostly produced in Brazil, where, according to 2007 figures, 1.5 billion liters (390 million gallons) are consumed annually, compared with 15 (the national spirit of Brazil), and ethanol Ethanol, also called ethyl alcohol, pure alcohol, grain alcohol, or drinking alcohol, is a volatile, flammable, colorless liquid. It is a powerful psychoactive drug and one of the oldest recreational drugs. It is best known as the type of alcohol found in alcoholic beverages and thermometers. In common usage, it is often referred to simply as. The bagasse Bagasse is the fibrous residue remaining after sugarcane or sorghum stalks are crushed to extract their juice. It is currently used as a biofuel and as a renewable resource in the manufacture of pulp and paper products and building materials that remains after sugar cane crushing may be burned to provide heat and electricity. It may also, because of its high cellulose content, serve as raw material for paper Paper is a thin material mainly used for writing upon, printing upon or for packaging. It is produced by pressing together moist fibers, typically cellulose pulp derived from wood, rags or grasses, and drying them into flexible sheets, cardboard Corrugated fiberboard is a paper-based material consisting of a fluted corrugated sheet and one or two flat linerboards. It is widely used in the manufacture of corrugated boxes and shipping containers, and eating utensils that, because they are by-products, may be branded as "environmentally friendly Environmentally friendly are synonyms used to refer to goods and services, laws, guidelines and policies considered to inflict minimal or no harm on the environment. To make consumers aware, environmentally friendly goods and services often are marked with eco-labels. But because there is no single international standard for this concept, the".

Contents

History of sugarcane

For a longer history, see History of sugar The history of sugar reflects industrial growth. Most humans appreciate sweet tastes. This has created demand for sweeteners, which in turn has fueled increases in the production of sugar, making more sugar available at affordable prices , leading to the development of more food products containing sugar and the addition of more sugar to existing.
The westward diffusion of sugarcane in pre-Islamic times (shown in red), in the medieval Muslim world The term Muslim world has several meanings. In a cultural sense, it refers to the worldwide community of Muslims, adherents of Islam. This community numbers about 1.3-1.5 billion people, roughly one-fifth of the world population. This community is spread across many different nations and ethnic groups connected by religion and a shared sense of (green) and by Europeans (violet)[2]

Sugarcane is indigenous to tropical South Asia South Asia, also known as Southern Asia, is the southern region of the Asian continent, which comprises the sub-Himalayan countries and, for some authorities , also includes the adjoining countries on the west and the east. Topographically, it is dominated by the Indian Plate, which rises above sea level as the Indian subcontinent south of the and Southeast Asia Southeast Asia is a subregion of Asia, consisting of the countries that are geographically south of China, east of India and north of Australia. The region lies on the intersection of geological plates, with heavy seismic and volcanic activity.[3] Different species likely originated in different locations with S. barberi originating in India India, officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with 1.18 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world. Mainland India is bounded by the Indian Ocean on the south, the Arabian Sea on the west, and the Bay of Bengal on the and S. edule and S. officinarum coming from New Guinea New Guinea, the largest island in the Indonesian archipelago, and located in Melanesia immediately north of northeast Australia in the Southwest Pacific, is the world's second largest island with its 786,000 sq km. It has a low population density with its 7.5 million people. Its highest mount is the Puncak Jaya at an elevation of 4,884 m (16,023.[3] Crystallized sugar was reported 5,000 years ago in India.

Around the eighth century A.D., Arabs Arab people or Arabs (العرب al-ʿarab) are a panethnicity of peoples of various ancestral origins, religious backgrounds and historic identities, whose members, on an individual basis, identify as such on one or more of linguistic, cultural, political, or genealogical grounds. Those self-identifying as Arab, however, rarely do so with it as introduced sugar to the Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean surrounded by the Mediterranean region and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Anatolia and Europe, on the south by North Africa, and on the east by the Levant. The sea is technically a part of the Atlantic Ocean, although it is usually identified as a completely, Mesopotamia Mesopotamia is a toponym for the area of the Tigris-Euphrates river system, largely corresponding to modern-day Iraq, as well as some parts of northeastern Syria, southeastern Turkey, and southwestern Iran, Egypt Egypt (pronounced /ˈiːdʒɪpt/ ; Arabic: مصر‎ Miṣr, pronounced [misˤɾ] ( listen); Arabic: مِصْر Miṣr [ˈmisˤɾ]; Egyptian Arabic: مَصْر Maṣr [ˈmɑsˤɾ]; Coptic: Ⲭⲏⲙⲓ, kīmi; Egyptian: 𓆎𓅓𓏏𓊖 Kemet), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula, North Africa North Africa or Northern Africa is the northernmost region of the African continent, linked by the Sahara to Sub-Saharan Africa. Geopolitically, the United Nations definition of Northern Africa includes seven countries or territories; Algeria, Egypt, Libya, Morocco, Sudan, Tunisia, and Western Sahara Algeria, Morocco, Tunisia, Mauritania, and, and Andalusia Andalusia is an autonomous community of Spain and recognized as a historical nationality. It is the most populous (8,285,692 inhabitants in 2009) and the second largest, in terms of land area, of the seventeen autonomous communities of the Kingdom of Spain. Its capital and largest city is Seville (Spanish: Sevilla). The region is divided into. By the tenth century, sources state, there was no village in Mesopotamia Mesopotamia is a toponym for the area of the Tigris-Euphrates river system, largely corresponding to modern-day Iraq, as well as some parts of northeastern Syria, southeastern Turkey, and southwestern Iran that did not grow sugar cane.[2] It was among the early crops brought to the Americas by the Andalusians Andalusia is an autonomous community of Spain and recognized as a historical nationality. It is the most populous (8,285,692 inhabitants in 2009) and the second largest, in terms of land area, of the seventeen autonomous communities of the Kingdom of Spain. Its capital and largest city is Seville (Spanish: Sevilla). The region is divided into (from their fields in the Canary Islands The Canary Islands (pronounced /kəˈnɛəriː ˈaɪləndz/, colloquially also known as the Canaries; Spanish: Islas Canarias, pronounced [ˈislas kaˈnarjas]; 28°06′N 15°24′W / 28.1°N 15.4°W ), and the Portuguese Portugal /ˈpɔɹtʃʉɡəl/ (Portuguese: Portugal, Mirandese: Pertual), officially the Portuguese Republic (Portuguese: República Portuguesa; Mirandese: República Pertuesa), is a country located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the west and.

"Boiling houses" in the 17th through 19th centuries converted sugarcane juice into raw sugar Sugar is an informal term for a class of edible crystalline carbohydrates, mainly sucrose, lactose, and fructose characterized by a sweet flavor. In food, sugar almost exclusively refers to sucrose, which primarily comes from sugar cane and sugar beet. Other sugars are used in industrial food preparation, but are usually known by more specific. These houses were attached to sugar plantations in the western colonies. Slaves often ran the boiling process, under very poor conditions. Made of cut stone, rectangular boxes of brick or stone served as furnaces with an opening at the bottom to stoke the fire and remove ashes. At the top of each furnace were up to seven copper kettles or boilers, each one smaller and hotter than the previous one. The cane juice began in the largest kettle. The juice was then heated and lime added to remove impurities. The juice was skimmed, then channeled to successively smaller kettles. The last kettle, which was called the 'teache', was where the cane juice became syrup. The next step was a cooling trough, where the sugar crystals hardened around a sticky core of molasses. This raw sugar was then shoveled from the cooling trough into hogsheads A hogshead is a large cask of liquid . More specifically, it refers to a specified volume, measured in either Imperial units or U.S. customary units, primarily applied to alcoholic beverages such as wine, ale, or cider (wooden barrels), and from there into the curing house.

A sugar plantation on the island of Réunion Réunion (French: La Réunion, IPA: [la ʁeynjɔ̃] ; previously Île Bourbon) is a French island of about 800,000 population located in the Indian Ocean, east of Madagascar, about 200 kilometres (120 mi) south west of Mauritius, the nearest island in the late 1800s

Sugarcane is still extensively grown in the Caribbean The Caribbean is a region consisting of the Caribbean Sea, its islands , and the surrounding coasts. The region is located southeast of the Gulf of Mexico and Northern America, east of Central America, and to the north of South America. Christopher Columbus Christopher Columbus was an Italian navigator, colonizer, and explorer whose voyages across the Atlantic Ocean led to general European awareness of the American continents in the Western Hemisphere. With his four voyages of exploration and several attempts at establishing a settlement on the island of Hispaniola, all funded by Isabella I of first brought it during his second voyage to the Americas The Americas, or America, are the lands of the Western hemisphere or New World, comprising the continents of North America and South America with their associated islands and regions. America may be ambiguous in English, as it is more commonly used to refer to the United States of America. The Americas cover 8.3% of the Earth's total surface area (, initially to the island of Hispaniola Hispaniola is a major island in the Caribbean, containing the two sovereign states of the Dominican Republic and Haiti. The island is located between the islands of Cuba to the west, and Puerto Rico to the east, directly within the hurricane belt. Hispaniola is perhaps most famous as the site of the first European colonies in the New World, (modern day Haiti Haiti (pronounced /ˈheɪti/ ; French Haïti, pronounced: [a.iti]; Haitian Creole: Ayiti, Haitian Creole pronunciation: [ajiti]), officially the Republic of Haiti (République d'Haïti ; Repiblik Ayiti) is a Caribbean country. Along with the Dominican Republic, it occupies the island of Hispaniola, in the Greater Antillean archipelago. Ayiti (land and the Dominican Republic The Dominican Republic (pronounced /dɒmˌɪnɪkən rɨˈpʌblɪk/ ; Spanish: República Dominicana, pronounced [reˈpuβlika ðominiˈkana]) is a nation on the island of Hispaniola, part of the Greater Antilles archipelago in the Caribbean region. The western third of the island is occupied by the nation of Haiti, making Hispaniola one of two). In colonial times, sugar formed one side of the triangular trade Triangular trade, or Triangle trade, is a historical term indicating trade among three ports or regions. Triangular trade usually evolves when a region has export commodities that are not required in the region from which its major imports come. Triangular trade thus provides a mechanism for rectifying trade imbalances between these regions of New World raw materials, European manufactures, and African slaves Slavery is a system in which people are the property of others. Slaves can be held against their will from the time of their capture, purchase or birth, and deprived of the right to leave, to refuse to work, or to demand wages. In some societies it was legal for an owner to kill a slave; in others it was a crime to kill a slave. France France (pronounced /ˈfrænts/ frantss or /ˈfrɑːnts/ frahnts; French pronunciation (help·info): [fʁɑ̃s]), officially the French Republic (French: République française, pronounced: [ʁepyblik fʁɑ̃sɛz]), is a state in Western Europe with several of its overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, found its sugarcane islands so valuable, it effectively traded its portion of Canada, famously dubbed "a few acres of snow "A few acres of snow" is one of several quotations from Voltaire, the 18th-century writer, which are representative of his sneering evaluation of Canada, and by extension New France's, lack of economic value and strategic importance to 18th-century France. Because of its representative value and its concision, it has become rooted into," to Britain for their return of Guadeloupe Guadeloupe is an archipelago located in the Leeward Islands, in the Lesser Antilles, with a land area of 1,628 square kilometres (629 sq. mi) and a population of 400,000. It is the first overseas region of France, consisting of a single overseas department. As with the other overseas departments, Guadeloupe is also one of the twenty-six regions of, Martinique Martinique is an island in the eastern Caribbean Sea, with a land area of 1,128 km2 (436 sq mi). Like Guadeloupe, it is an overseas region of France, consisting of a single overseas department. To the northwest lies Dominica, to the south St Lucia, and to the southeast Barbados. As with the other overseas departments, Martinique is one of the and St. Lucia at the end of the Seven Years' War. The Dutch similarly kept Suriname, a sugar colony in South America, instead of seeking the return of the New Netherlands (New York). Cuban sugarcane produced sugar that received price supports from and a guaranteed market in the USSR; the dissolution of that country forced the closure of most of Cuba's sugar industry. Sugarcane remains an important part of the economy of Guyana, Belize, Barbados, Haiti, along with the Dominican Republic, Guadeloupe, Jamaica, and other islands.

Sugarcane production greatly influenced many tropical Pacific islands, including Okinawa and, most particularly, Hawaiʻi and Fiji. In these islands, sugarcane came to dominate the economic and political landscape after the arrival of powerful European and American agricultural businesses, which promoted immigration of workers from various Asian countries to tend and harvest the crop. Sugar was the dominant factor in diversifying the islands' ethnic makeup, profoundly affecting their politics and society.

Brazil is the biggest grower of sugarcane, which goes for sugar and ethanol for gasoline-ethanol blends (gasohol) for transportation fuel. In India, sugarcane is sold as jaggery, and also refined into sugar, primarily for consumption in tea and sweets, and for the production of alcoholic beverages.

Cultivation

Sugar cane field on Madeira

Sugarcane cultivation requires a tropical or temperate climate, with a minimum of 60 centimetres (24 in) of annual moisture. It is one of the most efficient photosynthesizers in the plant kingdom. It is a C-4 plant, able to convert up to 2 percent of incident solar energy into biomass.[citation needed] In prime growing regions, such as India, Pakistan, Peru, Brazil, Bolivia, Colombia, Australia, Ecuador, Cuba, the Philippines, El Salvador and Hawaii, sugarcane can produce 20 kilograms (44 lb) for each square meter exposed to the sun.[citation needed]

Although sugarcanes produce seeds, modern stem cutting has become the most common reproduction method. Each cutting must contain at least one bud and the cuttings are sometimes hand-planted. In more technologically advanced countries like the United States and Australia, billet planting is common. Billets harvested from a mechanical harvester are planted by a machine which opens and recloses the ground. Once planted, a stand can be harvested several times; after each harvest, the cane sends up new stalks, called ratoons. Successive harvests give decreasing yields, eventually justifying replanting. Two to ten harvests may be possible between plantings.[citation needed]

Sugarcane mechanical harvest in Jaboticabal, São Paulo, Brazil

Sugarcane is harvested by hand and mechanically. Hand harvesting accounts for more than half of production, and is dominant in the developing world. In hand harvesting the field is first set on fire. The fire burns dry leaves, and kills any lurking venomous snakes, without harming the water-rich stalks and roots. Harvesters then cut the cane just above ground-level using cane knives or machetes. A skilled harvester can cut 500 kilograms (1,100 lb) of sugarcane per hour.[citation needed]

Sugarcane exhibit at Louisiana State Exhibit Museum in Shreveport shows importance of the crop to south Louisiana from earliest times.

Mechanical harvesting uses a combine, or chopper harvester. The Austoft 7000 series was the original modern harvester design that has now been copied by other companies including Cameco/ John Deere. The machine cuts the cane at the base of the stalk, strips the leaves, and deposits the cane into a transporter, while blowing the thrash back onto the field. Such machines can harvest 100 long tons (100 t) each hour, but machine-harvested cane must be rapidly processed. Once cut, sugarcane begins to lose its sugar content, and damage to the cane during mechanical harvesting accelerates this decline.

Pests

The cane grub can substantially reduce crop yield by eating roots; it can be controlled with Confidor or Lorsban. Other important pests are the larvae of some butterfly/moth species, including the turnip moth, the sugarcane borer (Diatraea saccharalis), the Mexican rice borer (Eoreuma loftini); leaf-cutting ants, termites, spittlebugs (especially Mahanarva fimbriolata and Deois flavopicta), and the beetle Migdolus fryanus. The planthopper insect Eumetopina flavipes acts as a phytoplasma vector, which causes the sugarcane disease ramu stunt.[4]

Pathogens

Numerous pathogens infect sugarcane, such as Sugarcane Grassy Shoot Disease caused by Phytoplasma, Whiptail disease or Sugarcane smut, Pokkah Boeng caused by Fusarium moniliforme, and Red Rot disease caused by Colletotrichum falcatum. Viral diseases affecting sugarcane include Sugarcane mosaic virus, Maize streak virus, and Sugarcane Yellow Leaf Virus. See the list of sugarcane diseases.

Nitrogen fixation

Some sugarcane varieties are known to be capable of fixing atmospheric nitrogen in association with the bacterium Glucoacetobacter diazotrophicus.[5] Unlike legumes and other nitrogen fixing plants which form root nodules in the soil in association with bacteria, G. diazotrophicus lives within the intercellular spaces of the sugarcane's stem.[6][7]

Processing

Manually extracting juice from sugarcane A truck hauls cane to a sugar mill in Florida Sugar crystals Santa Elisa sugarcane processing plant in Sertãozinho, one of the largest and oldest in Brazil Evaporator with baffled pan and foam dipper for making ribbon cane syrup

Traditionally, sugarcane processing requires two stages. Mills extract raw sugar from freshly harvested cane, and sometimes bleach it to make "mill white" sugar for local consumption. Refineries, often located nearer to consumers in North America, Europe, and Japan, then produce refined white sugar, which is 99 percent sucrose. These two stages are slowly merging. Increasing affluence in the sugar-producing tropics increased demand for refined sugar products, driving a trend toward combined milling and refining.

Milling

Small rail networks are a common method of transporting cane to a mill. Refineries test newly arrived cane for Brix and trash percentage.

A centrifuge battery, which separates the sugar syrup from the remaining solids

The mill washes, chops, and uses revolving knives to shred the cane. Shredded cane is repeatedly mixed with water and crushed between rollers; the collected juices contain 10–15 percent sucrose, and the remaining fibrous solids, called bagasse, are burned for fuel. Bagasse makes a sugar mill more than energy self-sufficient; surplus bagasse goes in animal feed, in paper manufacture, or to generate electricity for sale. The cane juice is next mixed with lime to adjust its pH to 7. This mixing arrests sucrose's decay into glucose and fructose, and precipitates some impurities. The mixture then sits, allowing the lime and other suspended solids to settle. The clarified juice is concentrated in a multiple-effect evaporator to make a syrup about 60 percent sucrose by weight. This syrup is further concentrated under vacuum until it becomes supersaturated, and then seeded with crystalline sugar. On cooling, more sugar crystallizes from the syrup. A centrifuge separates the sugar from the molasses. Additional crystallizations extract more sugar; the final residue is called blackstrap.

Raw sugar is yellow to brown. Bubbling sulfur dioxide through the cane juice before evaporation bleaches many color-forming impurities into colorless ones. This sulfitation produces sugar known as "mill white", "plantation white", and "crystal sugar". Such sugar is the most commonly consumed in sugarcane-producing countries.

Refining

Sugar refining further purifies the raw sugar. It is first mixed with heavy syrup and then centrifuged in a process called 'affination'. Its purpose is to wash away the sugar crystals' outer coating, which is less pure than the crystal interior. The remaining sugar is then dissolved to make a syrup, about 70 percent solids by weight.

The sugar solution is clarified by the addition of phosphoric acid and calcium hydroxide, which combine to precipitate calcium phosphate. The calcium phosphate particles entrap some impurities and absorb others, and then float to the top of the tank, where they can be skimmed off. An alternative to this "phosphatation" technique is 'carbonatation,' which is similar, but uses carbon dioxide and calcium hydroxide to produce a calcium carbonate precipitate.

After filtering any remaining solids, the clarified syrup is decolorized by filtration through activated carbon. Bone char is traditionally used in this role.[8] Some remaining color-forming impurities adsorb to the carbon. The purified syrup is then concentrated to supersaturation and repeatedly crystallized in a vacuum, to produce white refined sugar. As in a sugar mill, the sugar crystals are separated from the molasses by centrifuging. Additional sugar is recovered by blending the remaining syrup with the washings from affination and again crystallizing to produce brown sugar. When no more sugar can be economically recovered, the final molasses still contains 20–30 percent sucrose and 15–25 percent glucose and fructose.

To produce granulated sugar, in which individual grains do not clump, sugar must be dried, first by heating in a rotary dryer, and then by blowing cool air through it for several days.

Ribbon cane syrup

Ribbon cane is a subtropical type that was once widely grown in the southern United States, as far north as coastal North Carolina. The juice was extracted with horse or mule-powered crushers; the juice was boiled, like maple syrup, in a flat pan, and then used in the syrup form as a food sweetener. It is not currently a commercial crop, but a few growers find ready sales for their product[citation needed].

Production

Worldwide sugarcane production
Top ten sugarcane producers — 2008[1]
Country Production (Tonnes) Footnotes
Brazil 648,921,280
India 348,187,900
People's Republic of China 124,917,502
Thailand 73,501,610
Pakistan 63,920,000
Mexico 51,106,900
Colombia 38,500,000 F
Australia 33,973,000
Argentina 29,950,600
United States 27,603,000
World 1,743,092,995 A
P = official figure, F = FAO estimate, * = Unofficial/Semi-official/mirror data, C = Calculated figure A = Aggregate (may include official, semi-official or estimates);

Source: Food And Agricultural Organization of United Nations: Economic And Social Department: The Statistical Division

In India, the states of Uttar Pradesh (38.57 %), Maharashtra (17.76 %) and Karnataka (12.20 %) lead the nation in sugarcane production[9].

In the United States, sugar cane is grown commercially in Florida, Hawaii, Louisiana, and Texas.[10]

Cane ethanol

Main article: Ethanol fuel

Ethanol is generally available as a by-product of sugar production. It can be used as a biofuel alternative to gasoline, and is widely used in cars in Brazil. It is a promising alternative to gasoline, and may become the primary product of sugarcane processing, rather than sugar.

A textbook on renewable energy[11] describes the energy transformation:

At present, 75 tons of raw sugar cane are produced annually per hectare in Brazil. The cane delivered to the processing plant is called burned and cropped (b&c), and represents 77% of the mass of the raw cane. The reason for this reduction is that the stalks are separated from the leaves (which are burned and whose ashes are left in the field as fertilizer), and from the roots that remain in the ground to sprout for the next crop. Average cane production is, therefore, 58 tons of b&c per hectare per year.

Each ton of b&c yields 740 kg of juice (135 kg of sucrose and 605 kg of water) and 260 kg of moist bagasse (130 kg of dry bagasse). Since the higher heating value of sucrose is 16.5 MJ/kg, and that of the bagasse is 19.2 MJ/kg, the total heating value of a ton of b&c is 4.7 GJ of which 2.2 GJ come from the sucrose and 2.5 from the bagasse.

Per hectare per year, the biomass produced corresponds to 0.27 TJ. This is equivalent to 0.86 W per square meter. Assuming an average insolation of 225 W per square meter, the photosynthetic efficiency of sugar cane is 0.38%.

The 135 kg of sucrose found in 1 ton of b&c are transformed into 70 litres of ethanol with a combustion energy of 1.7 GJ. The practical sucrose-ethanol conversion efficiency is, therefore, 76% (compare with the theoretical 97%).

One hectare of sugar cane yields 4,000 litres of ethanol per year (without any additional energy input, because the bagasse produced exceeds the amount needed to distill the final product). This however does not include the energy used in tilling, transportation, and so on. Thus, the solar energy-to-ethanol conversion efficiency is 0.13%.

Sugarcane as food

Sugarcane juice vendors in Dhaka, Bangladesh

In most countries where sugarcane is cultivated, there are several foods and popular dishes derived directly from it, such as:

See also

References

  1. ^ a b "Crop production". Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. http://faostat.fao.org/site/567/DesktopDefault.aspx?PageID=567#ancor. Retrieved 2010-06-17.
  2. ^ a b Watson, Andrew. Agricultural innovation in the early Islamic world. Cambridge University Press. p.26–7.
  3. ^ a b Sharpe, Peter (1998). Sugar Cane: Past and Present. Illinois: Southern Illinois University.
  4. ^ Eumetopina flavipes and Ramu Stunt
  5. ^ Yamada, Y., Hoshino, K. & Ishikawa, T. (1998). "Gluconacetobacter corrig. (Gluconoacetobacter [sic]). In Validation of Publication of New Names and New Combinations Previously Effectively Published Outside the IJSB, List no. 64. Int J Syst Bacteriol 48:327–328.
  6. ^ Z. Dong et al., A Nitrogen-Fixing Endophyte of Sugarcane Stems (A New Role for the Apoplast), Plant Physiology, 1994, Vol 105, Issue 4 1139-1147
  7. ^ R. M. Boddey, S. Urquiaga, V. Reis and J. Döbereiner, Biological nitrogen fixation associated with sugar cane, Plant and Soil, Volume 137, Number 1 / November, 1991
  8. ^ Yacoubou, MS, Jeanne (2007). "Is Your Sugar Vegan? An Update on Sugar Processing Practices" (PDF). Vegetarian Journal (Baltimore, MD: The Vegetarian Resource Group) 26 (4): 16–20. https://www.vrg.org/journal/vj2007issue4/vj2007issue4.pdf. Retrieved 2007-04-04.
  9. ^ "Three largest producing states of important crops". http://indiabudget.nic.in/es2001-02/chapt2002/tab115.pdf. Retrieved 2008-04-06.
  10. ^ "Meagher: Sugarcane IPM". ipmworld.umn.edu. http://ipmworld.umn.edu/chapters/meagher.htm. Retrieved 2008-04-11.
  11. ^ da Rosa, A, Fundamentals of Renewable Energy Processes, 2005, Elsevier, ISBN 978-0-12-088510-7, pp. 501-502

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Saccharum
Look up sugarcane in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

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Biofuels Algae fuel · Bagasse · Babassu oil · Biobutanol · Biodiesel · Biogas · Biogasoline · Cellulosic ethanol · Corn stover · Ethanol fuel · Stover · Straw · Vegetable oil
Energy from foodstock Hemp · Maize · Rapeseed · Sorghum bicolor · Soybean · Sugarcane · Sunflower
Non-food energy crops Arundo · Big bluestem · Camelina · Chinese tallow · Duckweed · Jatropha curcas · Miscanthus giganteus · Switchgrass · Pongamia pinnata · Wood fuel
Technology Bioconversion · Biomass heating systems · Biorefinery · Fischer-Tropsch process · Industrial biotechnology · Pellet mill · Pellet stove · Thermal depolymerization
Concepts Cellulosic ethanol commercialization · Energy content of biofuel · Energy crop · Energy forestry · EROEI · Food vs. fuel · Sustainable biofuel

Categories: Saccharum | Poaceae genera | Energy crops | Sugar | Ethanol fuel | Sweeteners

 

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'Sugar Cane' News
Sugarcane okay in standing water, helps protect Everglades - PhysOrg.com
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Sugarcane okay in standing water, helps protect Everglades

PhysOrg.com

A study by Agricultural Research Service (ARS) scientists shows that sugarcane can tolerate flooded conditions for up to two weeks. ...



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Sun Apr 4 02:35:48 2010
'Sugar Cane' Images
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South America 1 000 000 United States 500 000 Old World 300 000 Effect on Africa 1 Kidnapping capture and enslavement threatened villagers in West Africa for 400 years 20 generations lost their kinsmen to slavers 2 No population growth in Africa

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Mon Apr 12 03:27:43 2010
'Sugar Cane' Blogs
waitplease.org Your regular skin care program
waitplease.org
waitplease.org Your regular skin care program

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Fri, 23 Jul 2010 22:30:03 GM

One solution for exfoliating the skin in an in expensive way is to use sugar. Yes, Sugar! Glycolic acid which is found in most AHA (alpha hydroxyl acid) products is from . sugar cane. . You can benefit from glycolic acid by using sugar for ...

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Sat Jul 24 15:42:38 2010
'Sugar Cane' Answers
How do you prepare canned sugar cane?
Q. I have two big cans of canned sugar cane that my kids are just dying to eat. I'm just not sure how to prepare it. Do people just gnaw on it raw, or is it cut up and stirred into other things? It's in light syrup, if that means anything. I'm not planning to make a regular thing of this but we've had these cans for quite a while and the kids salivate every time they look at them. :-)
Asked by Rhonda Teacher - Mon Oct 27 00:46:23 2008 - - 2 Answers - 0 Comments

A. Gnawing is fun and yes they are used in another manner, as a skewer and for flavoring:
Answered by Steve G - Tue Oct 28 11:28:53 2008

Yahoo Answers Search: Sugar cane,
Fri Jul 23 19:41:43 2010
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