Mapping of causes for variation in quality of sugar in chocolate manufacturing

Abstract: The main purpose of the report is to present possible reasons and solutions for variation in quality of sugar used in confectionery manufacturing, with focus on chocolate manufacturing, at Cloetta Sverige AB in Ljungsbro. The project has its purpose to optimize the quality of both the sugar and manufacturing processes in a long-term perspective, since the variation in quality of the sugar affects, more or less, all manufacturing processes and causes yield losses.   Cloetta Ljungsbro uses a pneumatic conveying system to transfer the sugar within the factory and when unloading the sugar from delivery trucks. A various of different analyses were performed in order to study the sugar quality; water content analyses in forms of Karl Fischer titration and particle size distribution analyses with help from sieving. During the sugar sampling time period, an observation of the air pressure used by the road tanker while unloading sugar at Cloetta and the lead time as sugar was delivered was executed. Moreover, data of the dew point in the pneumatic conveying system and, both temperature and humidity in the sugar silos, were collected.   As a result, most of the sugar particles breakage occurred somewhere between the delivery road tanker and while in the storage silos. Most likely it is due to the use of high pressure when unloading the sugar that the particle size distribution of the sugar varies, but also causes the temperature to reach a higher temperature than recommended. Furthermore, the water content of the sugar was higher in the beginning of the autumn. Further investigations of the effect of unloading the sugar and storage of sugar should be done, but also analyse the air velocity used within the pneumatic conveying system.