A new method and apparatus for determination of fibre in cane

The paper describes a new method and apparatus for the determination of fibre in cane. Water is recirculated through a 500 g sample of prepared cane to form an active filter which traps insoluble matter. After the filter is formed the sample is washed for a fixed period to remove the soluble solids. The sample is then dried until constant weight is achieved. The time to complete a fibre determination is only about 145 minutes. The latter 75 minutes of this period involves drying the sample and, since this is done at an adjacent workstation, another sample can be washed at the same time. Testing of the apparatus has shown that there is little difference in precision between the new method and the bag method on clean cane but on soiled cane the new method is more precise. When soil was added to clean cane the soil retention approached 100 per cent for both methods.