EXPERIENCES WITH THE APPLICATION OF ANTIF OAMING AGENTS IN AUSTRIAN SUGAR FACTORIES

Within the framework of a project, extending over several years, it wa s possible to reduce the consumption of antifoaming agents at the Agra na plants to less than 50%. With the employment of special foam probes , on which bridging was avoided by rinsing with vapor condensate, the addition of antifoaming agents in juice purification was adapted to th e real demand. In vessels with little turbulences, foam layers were de stroyed by juice circulation through hollow-cone nozzles and additiona l probe dependent dosing of defoaming agent. To control the extraction process, raw juice was aerated in a flow through vessel and antifoam agent was added, depending on foam development in the vessel, for tria l purposes. For the assessment of different defoaming formulations, be et juice, obtained by continuous pressing of heated sliced beet and su ch virtually free of defoamers, was frothed up under controlled condit ions and titrated with thinned defoamer to a constant residual foam le vel.