Starch

Starch is an indigenous polysaccharides from cane sugar. Its content on cane depend on cane variety. Presence of starch in different varieties were studied by Godshall (Table 1).

Table 1

Starch in sugar cane exist in two forms:  amilose and amilopectin in the ratio of 1:4 (Meade-Chen).
 Amilose present a molecular weight between 100 and 1,000 D and amilopectin betwwen 10,000 and 100,000 D.
Amylose decrease filtration rate in Carbonatation (Ramsay, Watts, Meade-Chen).
Amylopectin decrease filtrabiloity in liquors after Phosphatation (Murray et al, Meade-Chen).

Removal of  starch from sugar products can be done enzymaticaly using alfa - amilase.

Moodley et al, 2002, refer that Carbonataion in cane sugar refineries removes 93% of starch (values obtained in lab tests).

Bibliography
Meade-Chen, Cane Sugar Handbook, Edition 11, John Wiley and Sons, NY 
Moodley M., P.M.Schorn, D.C.Walthew, P.Masinga, 2002, Investigations into
          Carbonatation, Proc. SIT. Conf., paper # 818