Experiment 7 Determination of fiber content in foods

Name: Nontaon Methavee K. S. 5112873 5114771

Introduction In the analysis of cellulose-containing foods, the determination of crude fiber is widely used. Crude fiber includes theoretically, materials that are indigestible in the human and animal organism. It is determined as material insoluble in dilute acid and dilute alkali under specific conditions. The basic method is based on procedure developed by Hennenberg, Stohmann, and Rautenberg in 1864 in Germany. The residue from a crude fiber determination contains about 97% cellulose and lignin. It does not represent, however, all the cellulose and lignin present initially. In addition, the crude fiber is a mixture of cellulosic materials and does not represent any specific compound or group of compounds. Despite its nonspecific composition, crude fiber is a useful parameter in food and feed analyses. Crude fiber is commonly used as an index of the feeding value of poultery and stock feeds, to evaluate the efficiency of milling and separating bran from starchy endosperm and in the chemical determination of succulence of fresh vegetables and fruits. Objective: 1. To study how to analyze the fiber content in foods. 2. To determine the percentage of crude fiber in food sample.

Materials and methods 1. The yam bean which used as the sample was weighed about 2 grams.
2. The 1.25 H2SO4 200 mL was boiled with the 2 -3 glass beads and the sample to get rid of the

fats.
3. The time was measured when the solution was totally boiled for 30 minutes.

4. The sample was filter through the filter paper and the residue was collected. 5. The NaOH 200 mL was boiled with the residue from the filter paper for 30 minutes to get rid of the fats. 6. The sample was filter through the filter paper and the residue was collected. 7. The 1 % HCl 200 mL was boiled with the residue from the filter paper for 30 minutes. 8. The fiber was washed with the hot water and the diethyl ether for 3 times to remove the trace of moisture. 9. The fiber on the filter paper was leaved at room temperature and was weighed as fiber A. 10. The filter paper was put in the crucible and was put in the furnace for 1 day and the ash was recorded as ash B. 11. The percentage of crude fiber was calculated.

Result

% Crude fiber = 46.01 %

Discussion This experiment, we have studied about the determination of crude fiber of food sample, the food sample we used was yam bean. The experiment was started by weighing the sample, then defatted. After that, H2SO4 was added to digest sugar, starch and protein, since protein will be denatured in strong acid treatment, then boiled for 30 minutes, the rate of heating should be gently boiled while swirling occasionally to remove solids from adhering of the solids to the sides of the flask. Next, the solution was filtered through filtration paper on a funnel, filtering should be done as soon as possible since late filtration generally results in lower results, to avoid this problem, the sample should be transferred quantitatively to avoid the loss of fiber, then washed with boiling water to remove all remaining acid. After filtration, the residue was transferred to a beaker, and boiled for 30 min with NaOH solution to hydrolyze some protein and carbohydrate, then boiled and did the same manner as in H2SO4, and also rinsed it with hot water to wash all alkali until it became neutral. And the same process was repeated with 1% HCl solution, but remember that in final filtration ash less filter paper must be used, otherwise fibers of the filter paper may added to the fiber content of the sample, then washed again with alcohol and diethyl ether to remove any trace of moisture. After all moisture was removed, the residue was transferred to a crucible and the ash content was weighted. Then this was incinerated at 550C and weighed after cooling in desiccators. Finally, the weight of ash we got can be used to calculate the percentage of crude fiber in sample that is 46.01%, as you can see from the appendix part. The reason that we boiled the sample in H2SO4 and NaOH, it was because fiber is indigestible. It is determined as material insoluble in dilute acid and dilute alkali under specific conditions. So that, the digestion of other components will be occurred except fiber. Conclusion In the analysis of cellulose-containing foods, the determination of crude fiber is widely used. Crude fiber are the materials that are indigestible in the human and animal organism. It cannot be dissolved in dilute acid and dilute alkali under specific conditions. This means that it will not be hydrolyzed by chemicals that are used to determine the level of crude fiber such as sulfuric acid and sodium hydroxide. The acid and the base are used to remove all the other stuff from the sample, and leave only the fiber. When we remove the sugar and starch in acid hydrolysis, and the protein and carbohydrates in the base hydrolysis, we should have just fiber left. But some of the fiber is lost during filtration, so that the quantity of the fiber we observe at the end will not be the exact amount of crude fiber, it should be a bit higher than the amount calculated from the experiment. Appendix Description Weight of sample (grams) Weight of filter paper (grams) Weight of filter paper containing fibers A (grams) Weight of crucible (grams) Sample 2.0531 0.8892 0.9462 35.9974

Weight of ash + crucible (grams) Weight of ash B (grams) Weight of crude fiber (grams) % Crude fiber

35.9989 0.0015 0.9447 46.01

Calculation Weight of crude fiber = A B = 0.9462-0.0015 = 0.9447 grams % Crude fiber = AB Weight of sample\ =
0.9447 100 = 46.01 % 2.0531

x 100

References

FT3107 Food chemistry and analysis lab manual, Faculty of Biotechnology, Assumption University, 2010 Internet:<http://www.scribd.com/doc/24474809/Determination-of-Fiber> Internet:<http://wiki.answers.com/Q/Why_are_sulfuric_acid_and_sodium_hydroxide_needed _in_crude_fiber_determination>