Sugar Tech最新文献

Considering the negative health consequences of sugar consumption, the polyols have emerged as promising alternative sweeteners due to their negligible caloric contribution and considerably sweetening capacity. Recent research has proposed fermentation processes in Stirred-Tank Bioreactors (STBRs) and Shaken Flask Bioreactors (SFBs) for polyol production. Furthermore, these studies explore cheaper alternative carbon sources, such as Non-centrifugal Sugar Cane (NCS), a product with significant antioxidant capacity attributed to its phenolic compound composition. This study focused on the effects of employing different NCS substrates, manufactured (NCS-m) and commercial (NCS-c), using STBR and SFB fermentation processes on polyol production, total phenolic content, antioxidant activity (DPPH and FRAP assays), hygroscopicity, humidity, water activity, and solubility, using a 2² factorial design at a 95% confidence level. L-arabitol, erythritol, and glycerol were identified in produced sweeteners. Significant main effects (p < 0,05) were found in the polyol concentrations, total phenolic content, DPPH and FRAP assays, and physical properties for the NCS substrate, fermentation process, and their interaction in specific response variables. Although the antioxidant capacity and phenolic content in the STBR fermentation with the NCS-m substrate decreased compared to the original substrate (21,6% for DPPH; 23,9% for FRAP; 54,5% for phenolic content), this treatment was identified as the most suitable due its higher polyol concentrations, enhanced antioxidant activity (DPPH IC50: 860,8 ± 21,40 mg/L; FRAP: 7,78 ± 0,071 mg Trolox eq./ g of sample), polyphenol retention (0,96 ± 0,075 mg GAE/g of sample), and adequate physical properties for use as a food additive. The produced sweeteners presented a promising opportunity to explore new alternative sweeteners with a greater impact on consumer health and nutrition.

There is a growing need for sustainable agricultural practices that enhance crop yields. This study aims to investigate the potential of chicken manure ash as a basal fertilizer in sugar beet farming. The treatments; control, conventional fertilizer (CF; 12:30:12; 60 kg N ha⁻¹, 150 kg P₂O₅ ha⁻¹, and 60 kg K₂O ha⁻¹), and chicken manure ash fertilizer (CMAF; 6:16:6; 60 kg N ha⁻¹, 160 kg P₂O₅ ha⁻¹, and 60 kg K₂O ha⁻¹) with 25% and 50% reduced doses. The highest leaf N and P concentrations were achieved with the 50% reduced CMAF treatment, surpassing both the control and CF applications. Potassium and Mg concentrations were unaffected by the treatments, while Ca levels were lowest in the 50% reduced CMAF group. Micronutrient analysis revealed that Zn concentration increased significantly under CMAF applications, particularly with the 50% reduced dose. Conversely, Mn levels decreased with CMAF, with the lowest values observed in the 50% reduced treatment. All fertilizer treatments significantly enhanced root yield compared to the control. Refined sugar content was unaffected, and the 25% reduced CMAF dose provided the highest refined sugar yield (8932 kg ha⁻¹) compared to the control (7354 kg ha⁻¹), CF treatment (7824 kg ha⁻¹), and full dose CMAF (7824 kg ha⁻¹). Root K, Na, α-amino N, and dry matter contents were not influenced by fertilization. These findings highlight the potential of reduced CMAF doses as a cost-effective alternative to CF for sugar beet cultivation, particularly for enhancing N, P, and Zn uptake without compromising yield or sugar quality.

In the global sugar beet seed industry, high-yield, high-sugar and disease-resistant three-way hybrids play a pivotal role. Understanding the genetic diversity and genetic distance of paternal polyembryonic pollination lines is crucial for constructing three-way cross-combinations. This study utilized two promoter-targeted molecular markers, CAAT box-derived polymorphism (CBDP) and cis-element amplification polymorphism (CEAP), to analyze genetic diversity and population structure among 72 polyembryonic sugar beet germplasm resources, while establishing their DNA fingerprints. Using TD-PCR, we selected 12 core primers with high polymorphism from CBDP and CEAP markers for genomic DNA amplification. The results showed that a total of 223 alleles were amplified by primers, and the number of alleles was between 4 and 16. Each primer amplified 9 alleles on average. The effective number of alleles (Ne) ranged from 1.0663 to 1.4916, the Shannon information index (I) ranged from 0.0981 to 0.4662, and the expected heterozygosity of Nei ranged from 0.0539 to 0.3037. The polymorphism information content (PIC) of primers ranged from 0.2917 to 0.9583. Population structure analysis conducted using Structure software revealed an optimal K value of 2, indicating that the test materials were segregated into two distinct genetic groups. This grouping pattern showed complete concordance with cluster analysis results. Genetic distances between germplasm accessions ranged from 0.049 to 0.385, with a mean genetic distance of 0.1986. Finally, after screening, all 72 germplasm resources were distinguished by using five primers (CAAT2, TGAC25, GATAA6, AAAG25 and ACGTG4), and the DNA fingerprints of these resources were established.

Soil degradation is a major challenge for sugarcane production in tropical regions. This study evaluated the effects of deep tillage combined with localized liming on soil quality, microbial activity, and sugarcane productivity in a clay Hapludox. A randomized block design with four replicates and a 4 × 2 factorial scheme comprising four treatments: conventional tillage without liming (CT0), conventional tillage with liming (CT2), deep strip tillage without liming (DT0), and deep strip tillage with liming (DT2) in 2 years of evaluation (2017—1st ratoon; 2019—3rd ratoon). Soil attributes evaluated were macroporosity, aggregate stability, soil organic carbon (SOC), microbial biomass (Cmic), enzyme activity and Stalk and sugar yields were also assessed. The results demonstrated that DT2 significantly improved soil fertility, alleviated compaction, and increased aggregate stability. In 2019, Ca²⁺ and Mg²⁺ contents in DT2 were 30.5 mmolc dm⁻³ and 25.0 mmolc dm⁻³, respectively, more than twice those in CT0. DT2 also showed the highest soil respiration (RESP) and metabolic quotient (qCO₂), associated with elevated microbial activity. Liming increased stalk and sugar yields by 15% and 28%, respectively, in 2017. Redundancy analysis revealed that pH (F = 15.60) and Ca²⁺ (F = 7.19) were key contributors to improved productivity.These findings suggest that deep tillage with localized liming is an effective strategy to enhance soil quality and crop yield while promoting sustainable sugarcane cultivation.

This study evaluates the effects of different irrigation techniques (subsurface drip irrigation (SSDI), surface drip irrigation (SDI), and check basin irrigation (CBI)) on spring sugarcane-based intercropping systems in the Indo-Gangetic Plains of India. The research was conducted at Punjab Agricultural University, Regional Research Station, Faridkot, during 2022–23 and 2023–24 cropping seasons. Sugarcane was planted in paired row trenches at 120:30 cm spacing. Ten treatments were evaluated: (sugarcane + okra) with SSDI, sugarcane with SSDI + okra with SDI, (sugarcane + green gram) with SSDI, sugarcane with SSDI + green gram with SDI, sugarcane + okra and sugarcane + green gram with CBI, sole crops of sugarcane/okra/green gram with CBI, and sole crop of sugarcane with SSDI. The study found that sugarcane growth and yield attributes—plant height, tiller population, number of millable canes (NMC), cane length, cane diameter, and internodal length—along with juice quality parameters such as brix, sucrose, purity, and commercial cane sugar (CCS%) were not significantly influenced by treatments. Among intercropped systems, T₁ (sugarcane + okra with SSDI) yielded the highest cane equivalent yield (149.5 and 107.8 t ha⁻¹), land equivalent ratio (1.77 and 1.59), and area time equivalent ratio (1.23 and 1.20) in both years. T₁ also achieved the highest okra fruit yield (8.11 and 7.09 t ha⁻¹), while T₃ (sugarcane + green gram with SSDI) recorded superior moong seed and biological yields. Root length density (RLD) was higher in check basin-irrigated treatments in the 0–15 cm soil layer, while drip-irrigated treatments performed better at greater depths. Economically, (sugarcane + okra with SSDI) provided the highest gross returns (Rs. 470.4 and 410.4 × 10³ ha⁻¹) and net returns (Rs. 310.3 and 307.8 × 10³ ha⁻¹) across both years, with the best B/C ratio (1.94 and 3.00). Overall, SSDI systems enhanced crop performance and profitability in sugarcane-based intercropping systems. Okra emerged as a better intercrop for spring sugarcane, compared to green gram.

To improve the precision of the discrete element simulation for the precut sugarcane seed-metering device, this study employed the 3D scanning inverse modeling method to construct the 3D model of the complex stalk segment (cane segment) consisting of cane buds, nodes, cores, and internode skin, and established the discrete element simulation model of the segment. The intrinsic and contact parameters of the segments were measured, and the angle of repose test, orthogonal test, Plackett–Burman test, steepest ascent test, and Box–Behnken test methods were used to calibrate and validate the contact parameters of the discrete element model. The collision recovery coefficients for the interactions between internode skin–steel, cane node–steel, cane bud–steel, internode skin–skin, cane node–internode skin, cane bud–internode skin, cane node–node, cane bud–node, and cane bud–bud were determined as 0.3391, 0.2805, 0.3660, 0.2361, 0.4411, 0.4121, 0.4553, 0.3434, and 0.1564, respectively. The static friction coefficients were determined as 0.0989, 0.0998, 0.2460, 0.4198, 0.2886, 0.5161, 0.5038, 0.7696, and 0.3281, respectively, and the rolling friction coefficients as 0.0321, 0.0135, 0.1026, 0.0250, 0.0263, 0.0690, 0.0684, 0.1788, and 0.0761, respectively. The error between the simulated and physical angle of repose tests was 0.62%, confirming the model’s high accuracy. This study provides an accurate stalk model for seeding simulations and proposes a novel modeling approach for complex crop stalks.

Date palm (Phoenix dactylifera L.) is one of the oldest cultivated fruit crops of the world, and India is its largest importer. India, despite being one of the largest importers of dates, possesses a rich diversity of indigenous genotypes in Kachchh region of Gujarat. Under this study, genetic variability of 48 selected genotypes was conducted both of indigenous or exotic origin with 42 morphological traits related to leaves, flowers and fruits. The study was conducted over three years (2021–2023) employing correlation analysis, path coefficient analysis, principal component analysis (PCA) and hierarchical clustering to determine trait associations and genetic diversity. Correlation analysis shows leaf length and width significantly influenced reproductive traits, particularly spikelet length, flower stalk morphology and fruit size. Path analysis further confirmed the direct and indirect effects of vegetative and reproductive traits on fruit weight, identifying spathe length, flower stalk width, fruit length and fruit width as major contributing factors. PCA identified key traits responsible for genetic differentiation, with the first seven principal components explaining 57.60% of the total variability. Hierarchical clustering also helped in grouping the genotypes based on their characters. These results contribute to the in better understanding of genetic resources in India and provide a foundation for developing improved date palm cultivars suitable for the country.

The adoption of sugarcane variety Co 0238 marked a turning point in India’s varietal improvement journey. As a breakthrough in breeding, it led to unprecedented gains in national productivity and sugar recovery, setting new benchmarks for performance and reshaping the criteria for varietal selection across the country. Its rapid adoption across the major sugarcane-growing states in Northern India was a testament to its success and achievement. However, this success led to over-exploitation of the variety, with widespread cultivation beyond its recommended zones and without adherence to biosecurity protocols, resulting in extensive monoculture and associated risks. These factors, compounded by institutional inertia and lack of a robust, healthy seed programme, undermined the resilience of the sugar industry and disrupted its previously sustained pace of productivity and profitability. The breakdown of the variety due to red rot, possibly influenced by the Vertifolia Effect, led to a classic ‘boom and bust’ cycle, reminiscent of previous varietal collapses following monoculture practices. This article revisits the journey of Co 0238, not to assign any blame, but to learn valuable lessons for the future of a sustainable sugar industry. It highlights the importance of viewing varietal transitions as strategic shifts that bolster resilience, rather than mere replacements. By embracing genetic diversity, timely supply of pathogen-free seed material, a well-coordinated and well-resourced national clean seed propagation system, and science-driven decision-making, the sugar industry can mitigate similar crises and ensure long-term sustainability.

Waste valorization has become a viable substitute for landfill disposal, underscoring the growing significance of environmentally friendly waste processing techniques. In this study, sugarcane biochar (SCB) derived from agricultural waste is used as an eco-friendly filler to reinforce Curaua fiber (CF)/polylactic acid (PLA) hybrid composites, aiming to enhance their sustainability. To improve the mechanical and structural properties, CF was pretreated with sodium bicarbonate solution (NaHCO₃) for different durations: 0 (A-type), 12 (B-type), 24 (C-type), 48 (D-type), 60 (E-type), 120 (F-type), and 240 h (G-type). Mechanical properties such as tensile, flexural, hardness, and impact strength were also evaluated for each treatment group. The results revealed that mechanical properties improved up to 60 h of treatment, with tensile and flexural strength reaching 56.32 MPa and 74.69 MPa, respectively. However, these properties reduced at 120 (49.85 MPa in tensile and 72.15 MPa in flexural) and 240 (47.81 MPa in tensile and 70.54 MPa in flexural) hrs, suggesting that excessive treatment caused over-removal of key fiber constituents, resulting in brittleness and reduced performance. DSC analysis of NaHCO₃-treated CF shows a shift in the moisture loss peak from 169 to 178 °C with longer treatment duration, indicating enhanced thermal stability. Enthalpy values decreased at shorter durations but stabilized at 127.2 J/g after 60 h, confirming structural relaxation and hemicellulose depletion. These novel hybrid biocomposites have a potential application in various structural and non-structural items, including food packaging, pharmaceuticals, sports equipment, and automobile interiors.

The extensive application of Ametryn (AMT), a triazine herbicide, in agriculture presents considerable environmental concerns because of its prolonged persistence in soil and water. This study investigates microbial degradation as a potential bioremediation strategy to reduce the environmental impact of AMT in sugarcane fields. We aimed to isolate and characterize AMT-degrading bacteria, determine their minimum inhibitory concentration against AMT, and analyze their growth dynamics in the presence of AMT and nutrient substrates like glucose and ammonium nitrate. The bacterial isolates, mainly Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Ensifer adhaerens, were identified from AMT-contaminated soils in Khuzestan Province, Iran, using 16S rRNA sequencing and biochemical assays. Both species exhibited AMT degradation capability, with P. aeruginosa having an MIC of 150 µg/mL and E. adhaerens showing an MIC of 185 µg/mL. Spectrophotometric analysis revealed substantial bacterial proliferation in the presence of AMT, with P. aeruginosa displaying a higher growth rate. Additionally, E. adhaerens exhibited improved growth in ammonium nitrate, emphasizing its metabolic adaptability. These findings suggest that these bacterial strains have promising potential for bioremediation applications aimed at reducing AMT contamination under controlled laboratory conditions.