Bone char (animal carbon) was the first decolourizer used in the sugar industry. Initially, refineries were supplied with ox bones that, after burning, were mixed with liquors. Nowadays, char is used in columns where liquor flows down way. After the decolourization cycle, char is washed, removed from the columns and regenerated by heating to 550ºC, in presence of a limited air quantity (Riffer, 1993).
Bibliography
Riffer R., 1993, Decolourization, in Cane Sugar Handbook, Ed. J.P.C. Chen, C.C.
Chou, Pub. John Whiley & Sons Inc., 12nd ed., 460-467
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