Process for Producing High-Purity Sucrose

A process for manufacturing purified sucrose, the process comprising:

• obtaining raw sugar;
• refining the raw sugar to produce a refined sucrose product;
• contacting the refined sucrose product with water at a temperature sufficient to dissolve the refined sucrose and produce a low viscosity sucrose solution having not more than 76 wt. % solids;
• contacting the low viscosity sucrose solution with a first ion exchange resin bed in cation form by pumping the low viscosity sucrose solution through the first resin bed;
• contacting the low viscosity sucrose solution with a second ion exchange resin bed in anion form by pumping the low viscosity sucrose solution through the second resin bed;
• and
• spectroscopically analyzing the sucrose solution as it is eluted through the second resin bed,
• wherein the purified sucrose eluted from the ion exchange columns contains less than 0.1 ppm Aluminum, less than 0.1 ppm Boron, and less than 0.1 ppm Phosphorus.

A process for manufacturing purified sucrose that is substantially free of inorganic impurities, the process comprising:

• obtaining an invert syrup sucrose-based material;
• contacting the invert syrup with water at a temperature and pH sufficient to dissolve the invert syrup and produce a low viscosity sucrose solution having not more than 76 wt. % solids;
• contacting the low viscosity sucrose solution with a first ion exchange resin bed in cation form by pumping the low viscosity sucrose solution through the first resin bed;
• contacting the low viscosity sucrose solution with a second ion exchange resin bed in anion form by pumping the low viscosity sucrose solution through the second resin bed;
• and
• spectroscopically analyzing the sucrose solution as it is eluted through the second resin bed,
• wherein the purified sucrose eluted from the ion exchange columns contains less than 5 ppm of each of the inorganic elements of Group 1, Group 2, Group 13, Group 14 and Group 15 of the Period Table of the Elements.