Evaluation of the efficiency of sugar beet processing strategies based on the data of the Sergach Sugar Factory

Abstract

This study is devoted to evaluation of the effectiveness of sugar beet processing strategies, considering the factor of reducing the purity of sugar-containing solutions as a result of long-term storage of raw materials in the conditions of a specific manufacturer - Sergach Sugar Factory. The purpose of the work is to formulate recommendations on the selection of the most effective strategy for manufacturers based on assessments of the effectiveness of various sugar beet processing strategies. As a result of the study, the effectiveness of two heuristic strategies for sugar beet processing was evaluated - “greedy” and “thrifty”. The implementation of both strategies does not require a priori knowledge of all information about changes in the chemical composition of raw materials during storage and is based on current information about the characteristics of the remaining batches of raw materials to the current moment. The “greedy” strategy involves processing the batch of raw materials that currently gives the highest sugar yield, and the “thrifty strategy” - the batch that gives the minimum yield. The efficiency was evaluated by comparing the loss in sugar yield from the implementation of a heuristic strategy compared to the absolute optimum. When calculating the estimated sugar yield, data on the sugar content of various batches of beets and the purity of sugar-containing solutions in the conditions of the Sergach Sugar Factory in 2021 were considered. As a result of the study, it is shown that the “thrifty” strategy has small advantages compared to the “greedy” one. Thus, when choosing a recycling processing in practice, it is better to give preference to the “thrifty” strategy. This makes it possible to increase the total sugar production per season by 100 tons.