PREFACE

he drive for relevance by a commodity industry can be recognized - - through many guises. One example is the age-old sugar industry. A capsulated version of its long and interesting history may be in order. The original discovery of the sweetness of the juice of the sugar cane is lost in prehistory, but wild sugar canes are still indigenous to the upper regions of those major rivers of India. A custom native to that region, the chewing of a "honey grass," is noted by the historians of Alexander the Great. Over the years this evolved into a lucrative sugar trade throughout the Mediterranean community. This was one of the rich prizes won by the Venetians as they wrested preeminence in the Inland Sea. The Venetians improved the commodity with a refining process, and cultivation of sugar cane spread Westward along both shores of the Mediterranean through the 13th-15th centuries. When, in 1493, Columbus was sent back to Hispaniola with colonists for the New Spain, they introduced the culture of sugar cane to their New World. Sugar beets, a thriving agribusiness in Europe since the Napoleonic wars, were introduced into the U.S. toward the middle of the 19th century. Thereafter, advancing technologies in agronomics, unit chemical engineering processes, ^nd transportation transformed sugar from an expensive delicacy to a household and manufacturing staple. This availability, coupled with the rising standard of living in the latter part of the 19th and the 20th centuries, erased former economic barriers to its use. The populace of the United States and much of the North Atlantic community responded in the years following the First World War by sating their appetites with 30-50 kg/caput/annum, at which level it has remained now well into the 7th decade of this 20th century. Thus the markets for the ancient sugar industry have indeed matured. This maturation for the sugar markets of the United States was comprehended by some sugar men in the early years of the Second World War. Challenged by the late Ody H. Lamborn in 1943, the leaders of the U.S. sugar industry elected to grasp an opportunity for improvement by organizing the Sugar Research Foundation. The goal established then, and still viable for this 33-year-old organization, is to defend and extend the utilization of the commoditysugar. Then, as now, at least 98% of the sugar sold in the United States was consumed by humans, most of it processed in the food business.
1

Downloaded by UNIV DE PICARDIE JULES VERNE on October 22, 2009 | http://pubs.acs.org Publication Date: June 1, 1977 | doi: 10.1021/bk-1977-0041.pr001

xiii

In Sucrochemistry; Hickson, J.; ACS Symposium Series; American Chemical Society: Washington, DC, 1977.

Yet there was a feeling of optimism that, if enough could be learned about the chemical peculiarities of this substance, ways could be devised to convert it into many of the material things required by a modern society. In such a way sugar could be relevant to the present age in a role secondary to its gustatory and nutritive values. Only the more foresighted of the pundits of that era were forecasting an end to the age of liquid and gaseous fossil fuels, a reality that would be made painfully evident to us. Hardly anyone could foresee a forthcoming age in which the focus of such a large portion of the materials industries would be turned toward renewable resources to supply the voracious appetites of the industries based on the organic compounds of carbon. Yet the research ethic, woven into the framework of the Foundation by O. H. Lamborn, and the continuing support of research by the leaders of the sugar industry have created a refrain which is consonant with what turns out to be the great theme of the 1970sthe substitution of renewable resources for those failing fossil carbon resources. The goal itself has not yet been achieved, for the sugar molecule is obstreperous. Sugar is an abundant resource of nearly matchless, molecular homogeneity, available at prices seemingly reasonable. Yet the prophet of utilization who has dared to roll up his sleeves and attempt sugar reactions in his laboratory, more often than not, has met stark frustration. The small differences in the energies of activation among the several classes of hydroxyl groups in sucrose, for all but the most sophisticated of chemists, have produced intractable and almost unresolvable mixtures of positional isomers with ranges of degrees of substitution. Most investigators have retreated to "safer and tamer" starting materials. In 1952, however, the Board of Directors enticed a demonstrated chemical innovator to accept the presidency of the Sugar Research Foundation. Henry B. Hass had created quite a stir in the chemical community by taming the vapor phase reactions of hydrocarbons to produce halogen and nitro derivatives with intriguing potentials. Dr. Hass brought to the research program of the Foundation new ideas and boundless enthusiasm. He charged research groups with seemingly irresistible drives to tackle sucrochemical problems, and his infectious enthusiasm fostered a continuing flow of "patient money." In the 24 years since Dr. Hass initiated the program, enough of a harvest has accrued from the seed he planted to justify this symposium. As assistant to Dr. Hass for seven of those years and subsequently for eleven years as Director of Research for the Foundation, your editor has found excitement and reward in the challenge of sucrochemistry. In the gathering experience of the midcentury, the sugar men of
xiv

Downloaded by UNIV DE PICARDIE JULES VERNE on October 22, 2009 | http://pubs.acs.org Publication Date: June 1, 1977 | doi: 10.1021/bk-1977-0041.pr001

In Sucrochemistry; Hickson, J.; ACS Symposium Series; American Chemical Society: Washington, DC, 1977.

many nations likewise recognized that, as in the United States, their markets had attained a stable maturity. Many accepted the rationale of the premises upon which the Sugar Research Foundation was structured. Sugar companies in Canada, Europe, Africa, and Australia joined in the support of this research program, thus establishing centers of sucrochemical research in many lands. Cognizance of this international character of the program is evidenced by the fact that 14 of 27 papers in this symposium are written by non-American authors. In 1968 the Foundation likewise acknowledged this broadening of its support by redesignating itself as International Sugar Research Foundation and strengthening its commitment to the encouragement of research on the uses of sugar. One of the vehicles employed by ISRF is the fostering of symposia on a variety of subjects. In this role ISRF welcomed the invitation from Milton S. Feather (University of Missouri), then Chairman-Elect of the Division of Carbohydrate Chemistry of the ACS, to set up a symposium on sucrochemistry. With the strong endorsement of Gilles E. Sarault, President, and with a significant commitment from the Board of Directors of ISRF, the writer was assigned the task of creating the symposium. In the structuring of this program, no attempt has been made to be encyclopedic; rather the aim has been to display a sampling of the work by some of the star performers, selected to illustrate how some of the difficulties have been surmounted and to recount some of the rewarding achievements in this quarter century of exploration. In the first section the concepts and evolution of an intriguing, fundamental chemistry of the sucrose molecule are explored. Three sections are devoted to illustrating some of the industrial applications of sucrochemistry: in surfactants, surface coatings, urethane plastics, and fermentation processes. The symposium closes with discussions of the business and economic forecasts for sucrochemistry. It has been a distinct privilege and pleasure, both personally and professionally, to draw together these 27 papers from outstanding contributors representing academic and industrial leaders from seven countries. These contributions are no less significant than they are self-evident. Yet, other major contributions to the achievement of the success of the symposium deserve to be recognized. First, the International Sugar Research Foundation contributed generous financial backing and staff time. The typing of the manuscripts for the printing was accomplished by the diligent, dedicated, cheerful, and thoughtful labors of Ms. Elizabeth Dodds. Finally, and most significantly, an editor could not wish for greater cooperation than the time, energy, initiative, and application of intelligent editorial skills given by Stephanie S. Hillebrand (Information xv
In Sucrochemistry; Hickson, J.; ACS Symposium Series; American Chemical Society: Washington, DC, 1977.

Downloaded by UNIV DE PICARDIE JULES VERNE on October 22, 2009 | http://pubs.acs.org Publication Date: June 1, 1977 | doi: 10.1021/bk-1977-0041.pr001

Officer at the Foundation), who has served so capably as the assistant editor on the manuscript. Working with such a team of contributors, backers, and production staff, it has been most rewarding to have created this gateway on the path to relevance in an age of sucrochemistry. 5915 Bradley Blvd. Bethesda, Md. 20014 December 15, 1976
Downloaded by UNIV DE PICARDIE JULES VERNE on October 22, 2009 | http://pubs.acs.org Publication Date: June 1, 1977 | doi: 10.1021/bk-1977-0041.pr001

JOHN L. HICKSON, Consultant

xvi
In Sucrochemistry; Hickson, J.; ACS Symposium Series; American Chemical Society: Washington, DC, 1977.