Technological aspects of the beet yard operation

The beet yard operation comprises the handling of sugar beets after they are received on site up to the beet hopper. It is not intended here to present a detailed description of all the individual steps involved, but rather to focus on the main technological objectives of the beet yard operation: sufficient removal of soil from the beets while limiting the associated (unavoidable) sugar loss as much as possible.

Parameters considered are:

– Washing requirements for beets from heavy (clay) soil versus beets with easy to remove light (sandy) soil;

– On site beet storage, as well as dry or wet beet intake;

– Sugar losses in different steps of beet washing and impact of retention time;

– Residual soil adhering to the beets after washing and HCl-insoluble ash in pulp.