SESSION: 2024-2025

CHEMISTRY INVESTIGATORY PROJECT

To Compare the Rate of Fermentation of Wheat

Flour, Gram Flour, Rice Flour, Potato Juice, and
Carrot Juice

Submitted to: Submitted by:

___________________ Student Name
Class: XII
Roll No: 01

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 ABC INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL
XYZ Road Civil Lines, Delhi- 112233

This is to certify that

Student Name

To Compare the Rate of Fermentation of

Wheat Flour, Gram Flour, Rice Flour,
Potato Juice, And Carrot Juice

2024-2025.

EXTERNAL EXAMINER TEACHER IN CHARGE

__________________ __________________

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 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

I would like to express my immense gratitude to my

chemistry teacher Teacher Name for the help and
guidance he/she provided for completing this project.

I also thank my parents who gave their ideas and inputs in

making this project. Most of all I thank our school
management, for providing us the facilities and opportunity
to do this project.

Lastly, I would like to thanks my classmates who have

done this project along with me. Their support made this
project fruitful.

- Student Name

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 INDEX

Content Page No
Acknowledgement 02
Certificate 03
Objective 05
Introduction 06
History 07
Contribution to biochemistry 08
Uses 09
Risk of Fermented Foods 10
Benefits of Fermented Foods 11
Experiment- 1 12
Theory 13
Procedure 14
Observation & Result 15
Experiment- 2 16
Procedure 17
Observation & Result 18
Precautions 19
Bibliography 20

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 OBJECTIVE

The purpose of the experiment is to compare the rate of

fermentation of the given samples of Wheat Flour, Gram Flour,
Rice Flour, Potatoes, Carrot Juice and Orange Juice

I became interested in this idea when I saw some experiments on

fermentation and wanted to find out some scientific facts about
fermentation. The primary benefit of fermentation is the conversion
of sugars and other carbohydrates e.g. converting juice into wine,
grains into beer, carbohydrates into carbon dioxide to leaven bread,
and sugars in vegetables into preservative organic acids.

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 INTRODUCTION

Fermentation typically is the conversion of carbohydrates to

alcohols and carbon dioxide or organic acids using yeasts, bacteria,
or a combination thereof, under anaerobic conditions. A more
restricted definition of fermentation is the chemical conversion of
sugars into ethanol. The science of fermentation is known as
zymology. Fermentation usually implies that the action of
microorganisms is desirable, and the process is used to produce
alcoholic beverages such as wine, beer, and cider. Fermentation is
also employed in preservation techniques to create lactic acid in sour
foods such as sauerkraut, dry sausages, kimchi and yoghurt, or
vinegar for use in pickling foods.

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 HISTORY

Since fruits ferment naturally, fermentation precedes human history.

Since ancient times, however, humans have been controlling the
fermentation process. The earliest evidence of winemaking dates
from eight thousand Years ago in Georgia, in the Caucasus area.
Seven thousand years ago jars containing the remains of wine have
been excavated in the Zagros Mountains in Iran, which are now on
display at the University of Pennsylvania. There is strong evidence
that people were fermenting beverages in Babylon circa 5000 BC,
ancient Egypt circa 3150 BC, pre-Hispanic Mexico circa 2000 BC
and Sudan circa 1500 BC. There is also evidence of leavened bread
in ancient Egypt circa1500 BC and of milk fermentation in Babylon
circa 3000 BC. French chemist Louis Pasteur was the first known
zymologist, when in 1854 he connected yeast to fermentation.
Pasteur originally defined fermentation as "respiration without air".

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 CONTRIBUTIONS TO BIOCHEMISTRY

When studying the fermentation of sugar to alcohol by yeast, Louis

Pasteur concluded that fermentation was catalysed by a vital force
within the yeast cells. He referred to this force as "ferments,"
believing they functioned only within living organisms. He stated,
"Alcoholic fermentation is an act correlated with the life and
organization of the yeast cells, not with the death or putrefaction of
the cells." However, it was later discovered that yeast extracts could
ferment sugar even in the absence of living yeast cells.
In 1897, Eduard Buchner, at Humboldt University of Berlin,
Germany, demonstrated that sugar fermentation could occur
without living yeast cells. He isolated a yeast secretion, which he
named zymase, that catalysed the fermentation process. This
ground-breaking discovery established the concept of "cell-free
fermentation," for which Buchner was awarded the Nobel Prize in
Chemistry in 1907.
Furthermore, studies in 1906 on ethanol fermentation contributed to
the early identification of nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide
(NAD⁺) as a cofactor involved in cellular metabolism.

Yeast Cell

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 USES

Food fermentation has been said to serve five main purposes:

• Enrichment of the diet through development of a diversity of

flavours, aromas, and textures in food substrates.

• Preservation of substantial amounts of food through lactic

acid, alcohol, acetic acid and alkaline fermentations

• Biological enrichment of food substrates with protein,

essential amino acids, essential fatty acids, and vitamins

• Elimination of anti-nutrients.

• A decrease in cooking times and fuel requirements

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 RISKS OF CONSUMING FERMENTED
FOODS

Food that is improperly fermented has a notable risk of exposing the

eater to botulism. Alaska has witnessed a steady increase of cases
of botulism since 1985. Despite its small population, it has more
cases of botulism than any other state in the United States of
America. This is caused by the traditional Eskimo practice of
allowing animal products such as whole fish, fish heads, walrus, sea
lion and whale flippers, beaver tails, seal oil, birds, etc., to ferment
for an extended period of time before being consumed. The risk is
exacerbated when a plastic container is used for this purpose instead
of the old-fashioned method, grass-lined hole, as the botulinum
bacteria thrive in the anaerobic conditions created by the air-tight
enclosure in plastic.

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 BENEFITS OF FERMENTED FOODS

✓ Enhanced Digestion: Fermented foods are easier to digest because

the fermentation process breaks down complex compounds,
making it simpler for the body to absorb nutrients.

✓ Rich in Probiotics: They are a natural source of beneficial bacteria

that help maintain a healthy gut microbiome, improving digestive
health and reducing gut-related issues.

✓ Boosts Immunity: Regular consumption of fermented foods can

strengthen the immune system by enhancing the gut’s ability to
fight off harmful pathogens and inflammation.

✓ Improved Nutrient Content: Fermentation enhances the

availability of essential nutrients, such as B vitamins, vitamin K,
and iron, making them more accessible for the body to absorb.

✓ Better Food Preservation: Fermentation naturally preserves

foods, extending their shelf life without the need for artificial
preservatives or additives.

✓ Reduces Inflammation: Fermented foods contain anti-

inflammatory properties through probiotics and bioactive
compounds, which can help reduce chronic inflammation in the
body.

✓ Aids in Weight Management: By improving gut health and

metabolism, fermented foods can regulate appetite, support weight
loss efforts, and help maintain a healthy weight.

✓ Detoxifies the Body: Certain fermented foods can help detoxify

harmful compounds in the body, such as phytic acid, and improve
the body’s ability to eliminate toxins.

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 EXPERIMENT-1

AIM-
To compare the rate of fermentation of given sample of
wheat flour, gram flour, rice flour and potato using yeast

MATERIAL REQUIRED:

➢ Conical flask
➢ Test tube
➢ Funnel
➢ Filter paper
➢ Water bath
➢ 1 % Iodine solution
➢ Yeast
➢ Wheat flour
➢ Gram flour
➢ Rice flour
➢ Potatoes
➢ Aqueous NaCl solution

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 THEORY

"Wheat flour, gram flour, rice flour, and potatoes contain starch as their
major constituent. Starch is initially broken down into simpler sugars
like maltose by enzymes like amylase. This process is often referred to
as saccharification. Maltose can then be further fermented by yeast into
ethanol and carbon dioxide.

To monitor the progress of fermentation, the iodine test can be used.

Starch gives a blue-black colour with iodine solution, while the
products of starch breakdown, such as maltose and glucose, do not. As
fermentation proceeds and starch is broken down, the reaction mixture
will gradually lose its blue-black colour.

To obtain the enzyme diastase, barley seeds are germinated under

specific conditions. The germinated seeds, or malt, are then crushed
and extracted to produce malt extract, which contains enzymes like
amylase."

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 PROCEDURE

1. Take 5 gm of wheat flour in 100 ml conical flask and add 30 ml

of distilled water.

2. Boil the contents of the flask for about 5 minutes.

3. Filter the above contents after cooling, the filtrate obtained is

wheat flour extract.

4. To the wheat flour extract. taken in a conical flask.

5. Add 5 ml of 1% aq. NaCl solution.

6. Keep this flask in a water bath maintained at a temperature of

50-60-degree Celsius. Add 2 ml of malt extract.

7. After 2 minutes take 2 drops of the reaction mixture and add to

diluted iodine solution.

8. Repeat step 6 after every 2 minutes. When no bluish colour is

produced the fermentation is complete.

9. Record the total time taken for completion of fermentation.

10. Repeat the experiment with gram flour extract, rice flour extract,
potato extract and record the observations.

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 OBSERVATION

Sample Fermentation Time

Wheat Flour 10 Hour

Gram Flour 12.5 Hour

Rice Flour 15 hours

Potato 13 hours

RESULT

Rice flour takes maximum time for fermentation and wheat flour
takes the minimum time for fermentation.

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 EXPERIMENT-2

AIM-

To compare the rates of fermentation of the following fruit or

vegetable juices:
• Orange juice
• Carrot juice

MATERIAL REQUIRED:

➢ Conical flasks (250ml)

➢ Test tubes and water bath

➢ Orange juice

➢ Carrot juice

➢ Fehling solution A

➢ Fehling solution B

➢ Solution of Pasteur salts and distilled water

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 PROCEDURE

1. Take 5 ml of orange juice in a clean 250 ml conical flask and

dilute it with 50 ml of distilled water.

2. Add 2.0 g of Baker's yeast and 5 ml of Pasteur's salts to the above

conical flask.

3. Shake well the contents of the flask and maintain the temperature
of the reaction mixture between 35-40°C.

4. After 10 minutes take 5 drops of the reaction mixture from the

flask and add to a test tube containing 2 ml of Fehling reagent.

5. Place the test tube in boiling water bath for about 2min and note
the colour of the solution or precipitate.

6. Repeat the step 4 after every 10 min. When the reaction mixture
stops giving red colour or precipitate with Fehling reagent, the
completion of fermentation is indicated.

7. Note the time taken for completion of fermentation.

8. Repeat the above experiment by taking 5 ml of carrot juice.

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 OBSERVATION

❖ Volume of fruit juice taken = 5 ml

❖ Volume of distilled water added = 50 ml

❖ Weight of Baker's yeast added = 2g

❖ Volume of solution of Pasteur's salts = 5 ml

RESULT

The rate of fermentation of orange juice is more than the rate of

fermentation of carrot juice

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 PRECAUTIONS

1. Ensure all glassware and apparatus are clean and sterilized to avoid
contamination.

2. Accurately measure all reagents, yeast, and solutions to maintain

consistency.

3. Maintain the water bath temperature strictly within the specified

range (50-60°C for Experiment 1, 35-40°C for Experiment 2).

4. Use freshly prepared fruit and vegetable extracts for reliable

results.

5. Add yeast and other solutions immediately after preparation to

avoid delays in fermentation.

6. Perform the iodine and Fehling tests at precise intervals for

accurate observations.

7. Filter extracts carefully to remove solids and impurities that may

interfere with fermentation.

8. Cover the flasks properly to prevent external microorganisms from

contaminating the samples.

9. Conduct the experiment in a well-ventilated area to avoid inhaling

any fumes.

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 BIBLIOGRAPHY

• www.google.com

• www.wikipedia.com

• Lab Manual for Class XII

• NCERT Chemistry Textbook for Class XII

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