What is "sucrose"

Sucrose \Su"crose`\, n. [F. sucre sugar. See Sugar.] (Chem.) A common variety of sugar found in the juices of many plants, as the sugar cane, sorghum, sugar maple, beet root, etc. It is extracted as a sweet, white crystalline substance which is valuable as a food product, and, being antiputrescent, is largely used in the preservation of fruit. Called also saccharose, cane sugar, etc. At one time the term was used by extension, for any one of the class of isomeric substances (as lactose, maltose, etc.) of which sucrose proper is the type; however this usage is now archaic.

Note: Sucrose proper is a dextrorotatory carbohydrate, C12H22O11. It does not reduce Fehling's solution, and though not directly fermentable, yet on standing with yeast it is changed by the diastase present to invert sugar (dextrose and levulose), which then breaks down to alcohol and carbon dioxide. It is also decomposed to invert sugar by heating with acids, whence it is also called a disaccharate. Sucrose possesses at once the properties of an alcohol and a ketone, and also forms compounds (called sucrates) analogous to salts. Cf. Sugar.

"cane-sugar, white crystalline sugar used as a sweetener," 1857, from French sucre "sugar" (see sugar (n.)) + chemical suffix -ose (2).

n. a complex carbohydrate found in many plants and used as a sweetening agent [syn: saccharose]

Sucrose is a common, naturally occurring carbohydrate found in many plants and plant parts. Saccharose is an obsolete name for sugars in general, especially sucrose. The molecule is a disaccharide combination of the monosaccharides glucose and fructose with the formula CHO.

Sucrose is often extracted and refined from either cane or beet sugar for human consumption. Modern industrial sugar refinement processes often involve bleaching and crystallization, producing a white, odorless, crystalline powder with a sweet taste of pure sucrose, devoid of vitamins and minerals. This refined form of sucrose is commonly referred to as table sugar or just sugar. It plays a central role as an additive in food production and food consumption all over the world. About 175 million metric tons of sucrose were produced worldwide in 2013.

The word "sucrose" was coined in 1857 by the English chemist William Miller from the French sucre ("sugar") and the generic chemical suffix for sugars -ose. The abbreviated term Suc is often used for sucrose in scientific literature.