Table sugar – sucrose

The term sugar describes the chemical class of carbohydrates (qv) of the general formula Cn(H2O)n-1 or (CH2O)n for monosaccharides. Sugar is a building blocks of carbohydrates and it is naturally found in many foods such as fruit, milk, vegetables and grain, another kind of sugar is added sugar which can be founded in flavored yogurt, sweetened beverages, baked goods and cereals, and it is used widely in industry.

To most people, “sweet” is synonymous with table sugar (sucrose), which is derived from sugarcane or sugar beets and contains 16 calories per teaspoon. Colloquially, sugar is the common name for sucrose, the solid crystalline sweetener for foods and beverages.

The sweet taste of sucrose is its most notable and important physical property and is regarded as the standard against which other sweeteners (qv) are rated. Sweetness is influenced by temperature, pH, sugar concentration, physical properties of the food system, and other factors.

Sucrose is a simple carbohydrate and occurs naturally in plants because they make sucrose via photosynthesis. The highest concentrations of sucrose are found in sugar cane and sugar beets, in amounts ranging from 12–15 and 13–20% by weight, respectively. Sugar cane and sugar beets are the main sources for making commercial sugar. .
Table sugar – sucrose

Sucrose and sugar

Sucrose is a basic carbohydrate and has occupied a central position in human food for centuries. Sugar contributes to the pleasant taste and physical structure of many foods.

Sucrose is the scientific name for table sugar. It is a composite molecule mad of one molecule each of glucose and fructose.

Sucrose is known under many trade and popular names. This may may be related to its purity grade to its extent of granulation or crystal size and to its use.

All sugars are members of the larger group of compounds called carbohydrates and are characterized by a sweet taste.

The sucrose available in the markets as sugar has been extracted from sugar cane or sugar beet, but sucrose is also abundant in most plant materials , particularly fruit.

Sugar, in its pure state it is normally available as white crystals, but it can also be bought as liquid sugar, which is a solution in water.

Impure sucrose, crystals with coatings of syrup which are dark in color, are known as ‘brown sugar’.

Sucrose is a disaccharides and a non reducing sugar.

When a solution of sucrose is heated in the presence of some acid, it breaks apart into its tow sugars. Certain sucrose into glucose and fructose is often referred it as’ inversion’ and the resulting mixture is called ‘invert sugar’ or ‘invert syrup.’

Sucrose is more soluble than glucose and less soluble than fructose. In its dried, granular form, sugar become increasingly soluble in water with an increase in temperature.

Sugar may precipitate from solution, forming an undesirable grainy, crystalline product.
Sucrose and sugar