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    Vitamin C Simple Test

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    Sharafuddin Mohd
    This document describes a simple test for vitamin C (ascorbic acid) using a starch-iodine solution instead of DCPIP. The author found that using starch-iodine provided a clearer endpoint than DCPIP for titrating ascorbic acid solutions. Specifically: - Ascorbic acid reduces iodine, preventing it from forming a blue-black complex with starch. Dropwise addition of an ascorbic acid solution decolorizes a mixture of starch and iodine solutions. - 150μl of a 0.05% ascorbic acid solution and a few drops of orange juice were able to completely decolorize mixtures of starch and iodine solutions. -

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    Vitamin C Simple Test

    Uploaded by

    Sharafuddin Mohd
    84 views1 page
    This document describes a simple test for vitamin C (ascorbic acid) using a starch-iodine solution instead of DCPIP. The author found that using starch-iodine provided a clearer endpoint than DCPIP for titrating ascorbic acid solutions. Specifically: - Ascorbic acid reduces iodine, preventing it from forming a blue-black complex with starch. Dropwise addition of an ascorbic acid solution decolorizes a mixture of starch and iodine solutions. - 150μl of a 0.05% ascorbic acid solution and a few drops of orange juice were able to completely decolorize mixtures of starch and iodine solutions. -

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    A simple test for Vitamin C

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    This document describes a simple test for vitamin C (ascorbic acid) using a starch-iodine solution instead of DCPIP. The author found that using starch-iodine provided a clearer endpoint than DCPIP for titrating ascorbic acid solutions. Specifically: - Ascorbic acid reduces iodine, preventing it from forming a blue-black complex with starch. Dropwise addition of an ascorbic acid solution decolorizes a mixture of starch and iodine solutions. - 150μl of a 0.05% ascorbic acid solution and a few drops of orange juice were able to completely decolorize mixtures of starch and iodine solutions. -

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    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as pdf or txt
    84 views1 page

    Vitamin C Simple Test

    Uploaded by

    Sharafuddin Mohd
    This document describes a simple test for vitamin C (ascorbic acid) using a starch-iodine solution instead of DCPIP. The author found that using starch-iodine provided a clearer endpoint than DCPIP for titrating ascorbic acid solutions. Specifically: - Ascorbic acid reduces iodine, preventing it from forming a blue-black complex with starch. Dropwise addition of an ascorbic acid solution decolorizes a mixture of starch and iodine solutions. - 150μl of a 0.05% ascorbic acid solution and a few drops of orange juice were able to completely decolorize mixtures of starch and iodine solutions. -

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
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    of 1

    A Simple Test for Vitamin C

    Originally published in School Science Review, June 2002 83 (305) 131

    Many textbooks suggest DCPIP as the reagent to test for vitamin C (ascorbic acid) but I have found
    that the end point of a titration for this reaction is difficult to ascertain due to the lack of complete
    decolourisation of the DCPIP.

    Whilst participating in a 2001 Science week activity at the Plant Sciences department, Cambridge, I
    came across an ascorbic acid assay using starch-iodine in place of DCPIP (the source of which was
    the Thinkquest website). The ability of ascorbic acid to interfere with the starch-iodine reaction has
    been noted elsewhere, Sharma et al (1990) and Samotus et al (1994)

    I have used the following successfully;


    Iodine 0.5g dissolved in 100ml of 1% potassium iodide solution (approx 0.02 moles dm-3 Iodine in
    0.06 moles dm-3 KI)
    0.1% Starch solution
    1ml of starch is placed in a suitable receptacle and 1 drop of iodine solution added.
    The ascorbic acid solution is then added drop wise until the blue-black colour of the starch iodine
    complex disappear to leave a colourless solution.
    The above amounts were completely decolourised by 150µl of 0.05% ascorbic acid and also by a few
    drops of fresh orange juice.
    The ascorbic acid reduces the iodine to iodide so it no longer forms the starch-iodine complex.
    Reduction of iodine might also be the mechanism by which rinse aid inhibits the same reaction and
    thus be related to the findings of Hadi-Talab and Levinson (2000)

    I have used this reaction system as a practical assessment for Y12 Biology students using microscale
    science equipment and a micropipette dispensing 10 µl drops; this titration enabled quantitative
    comparisons to be made.

    References
    Hadi-Talab, R. and Levinson, R, (2000) Rinse-aid and the starch-iodine reaction SSR 81 99-101
    Samotus, B., Doerre, E., Swiderski, A., and Scigalski, A., (1994) Photometric starch-iodine
    determination in plant materials as influenced by ascorbic acid – critical remarks. Acta Societatis
    Botanicorum Poloniae 63 49-52.
    Sharma, S.S., Sharma, S., and Rai, V.K. (1990) Interference of ascorbic acid with the starch-iodine
    reaction. Annals of Botany 65 281-283
    Think Quest http://library.thinkquest.org/2690/exper/exp28.htm

    Safety
    Suitable precautions (gloves, goggles) should be taken when weighing out the solid iodine (harmful
    and corrosive) but once in solution the amounts used are small.

    Charles Hill
    Head of Biology
    Wymondham College, Norfolk
    NR18 9SZ

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