For the sugar industry, dirt in the cane supply is responsible for many millions of dollars
in extra processing and maintenance costs. Cane supplies to Farleigh and Mossman Mills
were sampled and sorted into the various cane particle types. A dirt analysis, through
ashing, was completed to determine the amount of dirt attached to each of these particle types. This paper discusses differences in the procedures for sampling, sorting and analysing the dirt content for the two trials. The trials revealed some surprising results in terms of the locations and quantities of the dirt in the cane supply. This sort of
information is vital to the engineer intending to design or modify equipment for dirt
rejection. While it is unlikely that results at Farleigh are representative of all cane supplied to Farleigh Mill, the results suggest that a dirt reduction strategy should primarily target the dirt attached to root systems. The results at Mossman, however, indicate that a strategy for dirt reduction should be primarily targeted at fragments and loose dirt.