A “tachito” for El Salvador

The advantages of a seeding system from BMA

Since 2014, BMA have been working very closely with Grupo CASSA from El Salvador. Our common goal is to improve energy efficiency and sugar output of their Izalco and Chaparrastique cane sugar factories.

The first project stage involved the supply of a vertical continuous pan (VKT) and two cooling crystallisers for the Central Izalco plant. This year will see the next step: installation in the Group’s refinery of a seeding system from BMA, known in El Salvador as a “tachito”, a small boiler in Spanish.

... and the advantages of the BMA method

The seeding system from BMA is designed for refinery products and A-product sugar. Its benefits include, firstly, better sugar quality thanks to the even size and appearance of the crystals, which produces a better CV. Secondly, an improvement in the colour of the sugar and better separation in the centrifugals, where less wash water is needed because of the reduced formation of ne crystals. An additional bene t is the reduced boiling time, which offers a potential increase in throughput, because of the larger size of the crystals fed into the vacuum pan, ranging from 100 to 120 μ instead of approx. 10 μ.

The entire BMA seeding system is fully automated and controlled using BMA’s outstanding knowledge of this process stage. Investment costs for the plant are low, in relation to the benefits it can achieve in cane sugar factories or refineries.

This “tachito” is already the second installation of a BMA seeding system in Latin America.