The diagram illustrates the step-by-step process of producing sugar from sugar cane. The process follows a linear sequence, beginning with cultivation and ending with drying and cooling to produce the final product.
Overall, sugar production consists of seven key stages, starting with the growth of sugar cane and concluding in the formation of sugar crystals. The process includes harvesting, extraction, purification, evaporation, separation and drying to transform raw sugar cane into refined sugar.
Initially, sugar canes are grown for 12 months to 18 months before being harvested. This is done either manually using a knife or mechanically with a harvester. Once collected, the sugar canes undergo crushing process, where juice is extracted from the stalks. The extract juice, then, passes through a limestone filter to remove impurities.
Following this, it is heated in an evaporator, which concentrates the liquid into syrup by reducing its water content. Next, the syrup enters a centrifuge, where sugar crystals are separated from the remaining liquid. In the final stage, these crystals are dried and cooled, resulting in refined sugar, ready for distribution and use.