User:Dillon Francis Oberholzer/sandbox

Dillon Francis Oberholzer has been involved in marine microbial research and aquaculture since 1989. Starting in Durban and Richards Bay research sites. He then opened a Marine company in Seattle where he was on the forefront of designing and developing free range fish farm enclosures and system. As the industry was very new and insufficiently researched at the time (1996) Close communication with the EPA led to myriad of microbial research and profiling for environmental impact assessments.

This in turn has led Mr. Oberholzer into profiling and identifying causes and designing remediation protocols and products for various industries globally.
 * 1) There is tremendous lack of understanding and confusion about mill sanitation in general along with typical biocides      used within the sugar industry.
 * 2) Lack of adequate knowledge about microbes and enzymes present in cane and juice, which are responsible for major losses in recoverable sugar and understanding of the microbial diversity of the organisms responsible for gum production in the various processing streams.
 * 3) The study of gums and their effects which involves the quantification and analyses of the gums and bacteria isolated from final molasses back to the farm needs to be evaluated on a case by case basis.
 * 4) This needs to be done location to location and region to region, taking into account bacteria bloom events, climate change and external sources introduced into the localized environment.
 * 5) Microbial diversity profiling of gum-producing microorganisms in sugarcane processing needs to be used as a tool to ultimately enable the development of a targeted approach to eliminate particular organisms from specific locations in sugar factories and processing streams.
 * 6) We have traced the origin of many of the contaminating microorganisms to the soil adhering to the sugarcane stalks and leaves, water supply, production facility equipment, buildings and workers.
 * 7) Upon harvesting, the cut ends of the cane stalks are open to microbial infection originating not only from the soil and surrounding plant matter, but also from the contact with contaminated cane knives, as in the banana industry.
 * 8) The cutting of cane is not the only mode of infection. Whenever a stalk is damaged either by a borer insect, burning or frost, it is exposed to microbial life.
 * 9) Also, if there is any rain-induced BHTCD (burn/harvest to crush delay) in combination with suitable environmental conditions, microorganisms will proliferate.
 * 10) The close correlation between rainfall and increased levels of dextran suggests that this correlation is predominantly an indirect result of BHTCD which is an effect of existing harvesting protocols and practices.
 * 11) Through tests and trial data I have collected it has been proved that burnt, wet cane deteriorates more rapidly than burnt, dry cane. Burnt cane is often partially covered externally with juice, which then supports extensive microbial growth if the cane is not allowed to dry out immediately after burning.
 * 12) During sugarcane processing, most of the microorganisms which infect the cane stalks are washed off into the extracted juice; this creates an excellent substrate for microorganisms which utilize the sucrose for growth. The excretion of their metabolic products (acids, alcohols and polysaccharides) into the surrounding environment is now a factor that needs to be controlled, monitored and evaluated regularly.
 * 13) It is worthwhile to remember that inadequate housekeeping and hygiene inside a factory and refinery also results in the contamination of processing streams where contact with microorganisms will result in sucrose losses, gum production and related processing problems.
 * 14) The mere presence of microorganisms in, on or around sugarcane and the effects of these organisms on the cane and in the production chain is a global problem.
 * 15) As mentioned above, contaminating microorganisms use sucrose to sustain their metabolic processes, and in return produce gums, alcohols and/or organic acids.
 * 16) These products of microbial metabolism are then excreted into the surrounding environment, the sugarcane stalks and relevant processing streams.
 * 17) The two major actions of contaminating microorganisms are:
 * 18) The removal of sucrose from the sugar production process, by using it to grow and reproduce, directly resulting in reduced sucrose availability for sugar production.
 * 19) Producing gums from the sucrose, results in a multitude of problems in sugarcane processing and manufacturing, specifically with regards to pol analysis, clarification, evaporation and crystallization rate of sucrose, factory capacity, scale formation, crystal shape, exhaustibility of massecuites, molasses purity and gelling of molasses.