Sensor for Checking Sugar Level in Sugar Cane?

Own Idea

Cut a defined length of cane between two knots.

and pass electric current between two ends,perhaps more is sugar more is current!!!!!!!!!

I would think the opposite is true. ~ 910 Kg b&c sugar cane yields, on average, 135 Kg of sucrose AND 605 Kg water. So I would guess the less sugar in a crude cane juice sample, the sucrose itself being non-conducting, the more water would be present, which would be conducting.

You seams to be right,

But should this method work?

No we should not cut the cane .

Exstablish a base line of knowns first.

When I was doing sugarcane research with USDA back in the 1970's we used a hand held refractometer calibrated to the Brix scale and had a small piece of steel tubing to pierce the stalk at the middle of the 4th node above the ground. A drop of juice was placed on the refractometer prism for the measurement. The instrument was self-compensating for temperature variation.

GA. I have used refractometers for years to calibrate foam mixtures on fire trucks. There are now electronic versions that have become cheaper, and easier to use than "mechanical" ones. As a bonus, they are more tolerant to dropping, I have some PAL-1 from Atago, and have been very happy with them.

GA

I agree to ozzb. The standard method to determine the sugar contents is to use a refractometer. As far as I am aware there are rather inexpensive instruments for manual operation availabel, as well as lab type eqipment which can be used for semi- automatic or automatic analysis of large numbers of samples.

nudnik

It's been a long time since I did work in that type of lab, but I also agree with ozzb. It is the standard method and is cheap/effective.

Bhanu,

Using a Brix meter, the type of sensor which can determine by infrared reading whether the sugar content meets requirements, you can probably maintain awareness of sugar level.

There are types of Brix meters, (and other sensors which determine sugar levels), which do not use the infrared reading, but the meter which applies IR light spectrum seems best for your needs. Respectfully, John Wear, TRIDENT ENVIRONMENTAL.