High fructose corn syrup production

The best example of a biosensor of this type is the glucose electrode (2). Regardless of the type of sample (i.e., a blood sample or an aliquot from a high fructose corn syrup production line) the glucose electrode is a biosensor. Here the emphasis is on the response mechanism and required components of the sensor. This second definition will be used throughout this paper. 

In 2002, approximately 2.2 billion bushels of corn were processed in the United States for the production of food, fuel, and industrial products. Of that 2.2 billion bushels, 19.22 million tonnes (757 million bushels) were used for high fructose corn syrup (HFCS), glucose and dextrose, 6.34 million tonnes (250 million bushels) for pearl starch, 26.69 million tonnes (1051 million bushels) for fuel and beverage alcohol, and 4.75 million tonnes (187 million bushels) for cereals and other products (Corn Refiners Association, 2003). More than 50% of the com processed in the United States is done so using the corn wet milling process. 

Honey and maple syrup are complex products of high market price (813C — 23%o). The main source of adulteration is cheap high fructose corn syrup (813C — 13%o) or cane sugar (813C —ll%o) and the adulterated product is easily detected at levels as low as 10% or so of added sugar. 

A critical consideration in the development of biocatalytic systems is the form in which the enzyme or enzyme system is going to be used. There are two general approaches. One is to use isolated enzymes. If these are inexpensive, they can be used as disposable biocatalysts, as is the case for glucose isomerase, ° which is the key biocatalyst in the production of high-fructose corn syrups from starch, or the lipases and proteases that are present in detergents. Alternatively, if enzymes are expensive to produce, they can be immobilized and used repeatedly by recovering the enzyme particles after each use. 

High fructose corn syrup (MFCS) has emerged In recent years as an alternative nutritional sweetener to sucrose. However, the use of HFCS has been confined to those applications suited to liquid syrups, In particular the beverage and canning sectors of the market. The manufacture of fructose as a crystalline product would open up further market opportunities for the sweetener. One company In the USA Is producing crystalline fructose In commodity quantities (1), but at a higher price than sucrose. 

A Taste of Honey The fructose in honey is mainly in the jS-D-pyranose form. This is one of the sweetest carbohydrates known, about twice as sweet as glucose. The jS-D-furanose form of fructose is much less sweet. The sweetness of honey gradually decreases at a high temperature. Also, high-fructose corn syrup (a commercial product in which much of the glucose in corn syrup is converted to fructose) is used for sweetening cold but not hot drinks. What chemical property of fructose could account for both these observations ... 

In recent years, the conversion of starch to fructose has become a very important commercial process. High-fructose corn syrup (HFCS) is approximately twice as sweet as sucrose. It is used in soft drinks, canned fruits, lactic acid beverages, juice, bread, ice cream, frozen candies, and so on. HFCS can be obtained from a variety of cereals and vegetables, such as corn, wheat, rice, potatoes, and cassava. Corn is the most important source of HFCS because of low costs and excellent utilities of its by-products, corn meal, oil, gluten, germ, and fiber. 

Debranching Enzymes. One major source of yield loss in the production of high fructose corn syrup is the loss due to incomplete conversion of starch to glucose. When a need exists with a significant dollar value associated with it, someone will develop a cost effective solution if given enough time. 

Microbacteruim arborescens, Streptomyces rubiginosus var., or Streptomyces murinus) Produced as an off-white to tan, brown, or pink, amorphous powder, granules, or a liquid by controlled fermentation using any of the above-named organisms. The products may be soluble in water but practically insoluble in alcohol, in chloroform, and in ether, or if immobilized, may be insoluble in water and partially soluble in alcohol, in chloroform, and in ether. Major active principle glucose (or xylose) isomerase. Typical applications manufacture of high-fructose corn syrup and other fructose starch syrups. 

Since this isnT a book about syrup, there better be a bigger lesson here, and there is. Because carbon atoms can combine in so many different ways, the world is full of isomers, and the different arrangements and orientations of atoms lead to molecules with the same molecular formula having very different properties. In our example, fructose has a sweeter taste than glucose, which is why many products use high-fructose corn syrup. So, the study of organic chemistry involves... 

Figure 6.10 Production of high fructose corn syrup.

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