FOSC 401: FOOD

CHEMISTRY AND
ANALYSIS LABORATORY

MOISTURE ANALYSIS

Water
■ The presence of moisture in food can be described by

– moisture content
– water activity

■ Moisture content influences properties of foods

water content alone is not a reliable indicator of

perishability

Total solids: dry matter that remains after moisture has

been removed

Importance of moisture determination

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 States of water in food
■ Water exist in food as
– Free
– Adsorbed
– Bound

■ The form in which water occurs in the food

determines the physical properties of the food

■ Also affects the ease of water removal from the food

States of water in food

Free water
■ Major water form in foods
– Acts as a dispersing agent for colloids and solvent for
salts
Adsorbed water
■ Water held tightly in cell walls or protoplasm
– Held tightly to proteins
Bound water
■ Amount of water in food that is unavailable as solvent
– Remains unfrozen at temp below 0

Moisture content of some foods

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 Determination of moisture content
■ Sample preparation: carefully done to prevent loss or
gain of moisture
■ Moisture removal is a function of time and
temperature.
■ Rate and efficiency of moisture removal affected by

Determination of moisture content

■ Free water can easily be removed by evaporation
while tougher conditions are needed to remove bound
water

■ Methods include
– Drying methods
– Distillation methods
– Chemical methods
– Physical methods

Drying methods
Based on change in weight of a sample after subsequently
heating to allow for release of moisture.

Moisture content % = initial wt – final wt x 100

Initial wt
Moisture content % = wt of water in sample x 100
Initial wt
Total solids % = wt of dry sample x 100
wt of wet sample

Temperature and weight conditions are important for precise and

reproducible results

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 Types of oven
■ Convention oven: more temp difference. Hot air is
slowly circulated without the aid of fan. Air movement
is obstructed by the pan in the oven

■ Forced draft oven: less temp diff. air is circulated by

fan that forces air movement through out the oven. 1-
24 hr

■ Vacuum oven
■ Drying under reduced pressure (25-100mm Hg).
■ Good for water removal with minimal effect on sample
component

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Microwave oven
■ Weighed samples are placed in a microwave oven for
a specified time and power-level and their dried mass
is weighed.

■ In microwave oven, water evaporation is due to

absorption of microwave energy, which causes them
to become thermally excited.

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Moisture analyser
■ Test sample is placed on an aluminium
pan and the constant temperature is
applied to the test sample.

■ Instrument automatically weighs and

calculates the % of moisture or solids

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 Distillation method
■ Base on direct measurement of water removed from a food
sample by evaporation
■ Moisture content %: Wt of water x100
Wt of sample
Cheap, easy to set up
■ Food sample is weighed and heated in the
presence of an organic solvent that is immiscible
with water
■ Water in sample evaporates and is collected into
a graduated glass tube, and its mass determined
■ Solvent must be immiscible liquids with boiling
point above water (e.g., toluene, xylene, and
benzene).
■ E.g. Dean and stark method

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Chemical methods
■ Used to determine moisture content of low moisture
foods such as dried fruits, candies and vegetables
■ Based on reduction of iodine by SO2 in the presence of
water

■ suitable for foods that contain thermally labile

substances or volatile components that might be lost
by heating
■ E.g. Karl fisher

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Karl fisher
■ It is based on the following reaction:
2H2O + SO2 + I2 → H2SO4 + 2HI
■ Food placed in a beaker containing
solvent, titrated with Karl Fisher reagent

■ Iodine reacts with water in the samples

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 Physical Methods
Hydrometry
Based on specific gravity or densities of sample

Hydrometer
■ Based on Archimedes’ principle
■ Best applied to the analysis of solutions consisting of
only one component in a medium of water.
■ Commonly used in beverages, salt brines and sugar
solutions

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Refractometry
■ Based on refraction in light
■ Measures moisture content of oils and syrups as a
function of the degree of refraction of a light beam as it
passes through the sample
■ Determine the soluble solids in fruits and fruit products

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Pycnometer
■ specific gravity determined by comparison of
the weights of equal volumes of a liquid and
water in standardized glassware

■ Density
= Wt sample filled pycno – wt empty pycno
Wt water filled pycno - wt empty pycno

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 Water activity
■ Measure of water available for microbial, enzymatic or
chemical reactions
■ Better indicator for food stability or perishability

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Water activity determination

■ The sample to be analysed is placed in a closed
container and allowed to come into equilibrium with its
environment.
■ The water content in the headspace above the sample
is then measured and compared to that of pure water
under the same conditions

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Analysis of water quality

■ Physical tests
■ Chemical tests
■ Bacteriological tests

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 Physical test
■ Colour
■ Turbidity
■ Odour and taste
■ Total solids, dissolved solids, suspended solids

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Chemical test
■ pH
■ B.O.D.
■ Hardness, presence of a selected group of chemical
parameters, biocides, highly toxic chemicals

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Bacteriological test
■ Impractical to detect all microbes present
■ Contamination or bacteria indicative of faecal pollution

■ Look for relevant microbiological test and its relevance

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 Reading assignment

1. The advantages and disadvantages of all the

various methods of moisture determination
discussed
2. Analysis for determining water quality analysis

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