Measuring Brix

Degrees Brix is the unit used to determine
sugar content in a solution.

Degrees Brix is a measurement unit to determine sugar content, typically in the food and beverage industry using a refractometer. Brix measurements allow precise quality control for sugar levels in different beverages, with one degree Brix equating to 1 gram of sucrose in 100 grams of solution. While sucrose is the primary element measured by the Brix reading, it is important to understand how other ingredients affect the Brix reading. The Brix reading can relatively calculate the amount of sweetener in a certain product in addition to exactly calculating the previously mentioned sucrose level.

Sucrose and other sweeteners allow for members of the food and beverage industry to create unique recipes for their products. However, a sucrose solution dissolved in water will return different Brix values than a soda because other elements in the process impact the Brix reading. To account for these shifting variables, a Brix value can be measured through either density or refractive index. Specific control parameters need to be established prior to measuring these solutions with refractometers, thus causing the term “Refractive Brix” to be used when comparing samples against results obtained via different calculation methods. Along with the numerical sugar concentration of a particular product, a product’s sugar concentration correlates to the product’s sweetness, giving controllers the ability to ensure repeatability in their process.

Process refractometers monitor and control
the quality of products containing sugar by
measuring Brix. 

Alongside Brix’s main functionality as an indicator of sucrose, high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) has become popular in the food and beverage industry as a replacement for sucrose. Recently, the amount of HFCS in a certain product has also been expressed as Brix, allowing for the Brix degree measurement to expand past its original purpose. Digital refractometers have become increasingly popular in measuring Brix degrees and also the percentage of HFCS in a certain product. These dual measurement possibilities allow operators to compare the content of a certain substance across multiple variables of sweetness. Additionally, the availability of these measurements in a certain process via the same measurement device allows for simplification of the measurement process. Hydrometers are another method used to measure Brix, although, as opposed to refractometers, variations in operator control may cause the results of a hydrometer test to be different. Both Brix and HFCS allow for food and beverage controllers to maintain cost and quality control, both in determining how much sucrose should be used in the process and to ensure each individual product meets quality standards.

Electron Machine Corporation
https://electronmachine.com
352-669-3101

Black Liquor Recovery Boilers

Recovery Boiler (courtesy of Wikipedia)

Article courtesy of Electron Machine Corporation

“Black liquor” is a term used for the waste products that result from the pulping process. The black liquor recovery boiler (BLRB) allows for the chemicals in the waste products to be reclaimed via combustion. These reclaimed chemicals are then utilized to both meet steam demands in the process and to generate electricity.

Modern day BLRBs are designed similarly to industrial boilers, typically as two drum designs, for operating pressure under 900 psi, or single drum designs, for operating pressure over 900 psi. The combustion gases utilized by the boilers can be sticky, so the BLRB furnaces are taller than their utility or industrial watertube counterparts. The amount of pulp producible by a particular mill directly correlates to the size of the BLRB. Small BLRBs process about 750,000 pounds of dry solids per day, and larger BLRBs process about six million pounds of dry solids per day. Precise attention and vigilant maintenance are required in order to maximize investment return for each particular boiler.

Black Liquor

In order to ensure stabilization of combustion, BLRBs are equipped with auxiliary burners which raise boiler temperature for the combustion process. The firing of the black liquor will eventually become self-sufficient. Combusting the black liquor allows for sulfur compounds used in the pulping process to be reduced to sulfide while inorganic chemicals essential to the process are melted down for reuse. The furnace vaporizes the black liquor as the liquor is sprayed into the furnace. Extra water is vaporized, and some of the combustion takes place as the black liquor falls to the furnace’s floor. The resulting molten smelt flows through spouts, which are operantly cooled via water, to a smelt dissolving tank.

A particular risk of the BLRB process stems from the relationship between molten smelt and water. The pool of molten smelt that accumulates as a result of the reclamation process needs to be kept separate from water, because water and molten material mixing at high temperatures can result in a smelt-water explosion. These explosions can occur when black liquor water content is greater than 42% of the mixture. Additionally, there are numerous ways water can enter the process – as condensation from the soot blower, a faulty steam coil heater, wash hoses – so controller vigilance is absolutely key to explosion prevention.

The Black Liquor Recovery Board Advisory Committee has recently introduced an emergency shutdown procedure, where an emergency evacuation alarm signals as soon as suspected water enters the BLRB furnace. The operator, with corresponding training, shuts down all fuel flow and minimizes combustion until all but a minimal amount of water is drained rom the BLRB. Annual inspections of BLRBs mandate the testing of all pressure parts and safety systems, because utmost care must be assured in preventing risk of system damage or operator harm when dealing with BLRB processes.

The World's Most Rugged Process Refractometer

Built for the most demanding industrial applications, Electron Machine process refractometers are designed from the ground up to handle abuse. From hot, dirty, and harsh environments in chemical plants and pulp mills, to the caustic wash downs and constant vibration in food and beverage processing, EMC process refractometers stand up to the punishment.

Electron Machine's reputation for building the world's most rugged process refractometer isn't an accident. They been providing durable, safe, reliable, and accurate process measurement and control instrumentation for more than 70 years. 

https://www.electronmachine.com

352-669-3101

Process Refractometers Maintain Product Quality in Commercial Food and Beverage Production

Process Refractometer (sensor)
(Electron Machine Corp.)

All commercial food products are selected on the basis of quality, freshness and affordability. Varying product quality is the best way to lose brand-loyal customers. Quality and consistency can be different between brands, but they cannot vary within a brand.

Manufacturers of juices, jellies, honey, wine, and carbonated beverages rely on the measurement of "Brix" to control product quality and consistency. Brix (symbol °Bx) is defined as 1 gram of sucrose in 100 grams of solution, and represents the strength of the solution as percentage by mass.

Examples of food and beverage products that need to carefully measure sucrose, fructose, and dextrose include soft drinks, fruit juices, dairy, apple sauces, jams, jellies, beer, wine, coffee, tea, vegetable oils, tomato products, and honey.  To do this, a device known as a refractometer is used to measure Brix (as well as other dissolved solids).

In smaller food and beverage applications, the refractometer is a handheld device used for batch sampling, but for high volume commercial processing, a more robust and heavy duty "process refractometers" is used. Sometimes referred to as "inline refractometers", these process instruments provide real-time, continuous measurement of Brix and dissolved solids.

Process Refractometer with
sensor mounted on sanitary
pipe shown with control box.
(Electron Machine Corp.)

This category of process refractometer is designed to provide very accurate and repeatable measurement for products flowing through a pipe or mixing in a vessel. They are designed to handle higher temperatures, resist contamination and corrosion, and they respond very quickly to any process deviation.

A process refractometer works by shining an LED light source from a range of angles, through a product sample, onto a prism surface. By measuring the difference in the reflection and refraction of the light source, a critical angle can be determined and the refractive index can be accurately calculated.  This measurement and calculation can be done accurately, repeatably, and quickly, making process refractometers the de-facto standard for the measurement of Brix in high production  food processing applications.

For more information on the use of process refractometers in food and beverage production, visit this link.

Get to Know Electron Machine Corporation

Electron Machine Corporation, headquartered Umatilla, FL, manufactures industrial, inline, process refractometers. As a vertically-integrated manufacturer, we have complete control over the time it takes to manufacture our instruments providing the highest levels of service and support to our customers. Superb quality control is attained by adapting modern technology and practices to existing designs. These include in-house microprocessor and DSP software design, surface-mount PC card design and assembly, 3D CAD/CAM designing, CNC machining, and MIG/TIG welding. Additionally, our founder's innovative nature is still with us as we continue to research and develop new products.

Learn more about Electron Machine at https://www.electronmachine.com or by calling 352-669-3101.

Hybrid-Digital Process Refractometer

Process refractometers are used for monitoring, controlling, and recording the concentration of dissolved solids in a process media. They accurately measure refractive index and temperature of the process media and provide a visual display in units specific to that process (i.e. Brix, Percent Solids, Dissolved Solids, SGU, R.I.).

The MPR E-Scan is a hybrid-digital critical angle refractometer. It is used to measure the refractive index of process fluids and may be used as an error indicator or an integral part of a complete process control system.

The MPR E-Scan is calibrated and temperature compensated to your process specifications. It is ready for installation and immediate use when received. Calibration procedures are available to change system parameters and allow the refractometer to measure different process fluids.

How It Works: Hybrid-Digital Measurement

Energy radiated from the LED passes through the prism surface to be reflected off a mirror to the prism-to-process interface. The light reaching this interface intersects the same interface over a series of angles specifically chosen to include the critical angle (Ic) for the process being measured. Light intersect- ing the interface at an angle greater than critical angle is refracted into the solution. Light intersecting the interface at less than critical angle is reflected up out of the prism up to the digital CCD linear array to be scanned.

The resolution of each sensing head is maximized by selecting the angle of the prism for the measurement and temperature range of the process.

MPR E-Scan

The MPR E-Scan refractometer utilizes a hybrid-digital measurement principle. The CCD (charged coupled device) in the sensing head digitally measures the refractive index of the process. Any change in critical angle changes the ratio of light to dark periods. The digital measurement is temperature compensated and converted to a variable voltage by rugged electronic devices in the sensing head. This allows the relatively sensitive micro-processor driven devices to be located in the electronics console where more protection from the process can be provided. The signal is then further enhanced and displayed as a reading in refractive index, Brix, solids, percent, or other measurement unit. This combination of state-of-the-art micro-processors combined with tried-and-true analog components provides a high-level of accuracy along with the rugged dependability required for years of use when installed in harsh industrial environments.

Isolation Valve Adapter and Safeguard Tool Demonstration

Plant personnel safety is extremely important to Electron Machine. Our Isolation Valve Adapter has a proven track record for safety and reliability for safe removal of our process refactometer sensing heads from a pressurized pipeline. Continuing toward our goal for absolute safety, EMC designed and developed the EMC Safeguard Tool, a device designed to further increase safety should abnormal situations arise when removing a sensing head from the process pipe line. Check out the demonstration below for a full understanding.

For more information, visit http://www.electronmachine.com or call 352-669-3101.