Exploring the Composition and Authenticity of Honey and Syrup Samples Using Quantitative NMR Spectroscopy and Principal Component Analysis in an Upper-Year Undergraduate Analytical Environmental Course

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Bibliographic Details
Title: Exploring the Composition and Authenticity of Honey and Syrup Samples Using Quantitative NMR Spectroscopy and Principal Component Analysis in an Upper-Year Undergraduate Analytical Environmental Course
Language: English
Authors: Jeremy R. Gauthier (ORCID 0000-0002-6446-706X), Darcy Burns (ORCID 0000-0001-5411-3930), Jack Sheng, Jessica C. D'eon (ORCID 0000-0001-7448-8828)
Source: Journal of Chemical Education. 2023 100(1):161-169.
Availability: Division of Chemical Education, Inc. and ACS Publications Division of the American Chemical Society. 1155 Sixteenth Street NW, Washington, DC 20036. Tel: 800-227-5558; Tel: 202-872-4600; e-mail: eic@jce.acs.org; Web site: http://pubs.acs.org/jchemeduc
Peer Reviewed: Y
Page Count: 9
Publication Date: 2023
Document Type: Journal Articles
Reports - Research
Education Level: Higher Education
Postsecondary Education
Descriptors: Food, Undergraduate Study, College Science, Spectroscopy, Componential Analysis, Environmental Education, Chemistry, Scientific Concepts, Graduate Study, Science Laboratories
DOI: 10.1021/acs.jchemed.2c00501
ISSN: 0021-9584
1938-1328
Abstract: The adulteration of food products, including honeys and syrups, is of growing concern in global food markets. Detecting adulterated food products can be difficult using traditional analytical methodologies because of complex sample matrices or poor separation of key compounds. NMR is an analytical tool that circumvents some of these issues by providing a snapshot of chemical components in a sample mixture with minimal and unbiased sample preparation. In this upper-year undergraduate and graduate laboratory, students are introduced to NMR as an analytical tool through the analysis of a honey or syrup sample of their choice. Simple sugars in honeys or syrups are quantified using a single point internal standard, while the NMR signals arising from the complex organic mixture of amino acids, proteins, carbohydrates, and oils found in these syrups are compared against a sample data set using principal component analysis. The experiment highlights the benefits and challenges of NMR as an analytical tool, demonstrating the simplicity of sample preparation and single-point calibration, as well as the limitations of instrument sensitivity and signal resolving power.
Abstractor: As Provided
Entry Date: 2024
Accession Number: EJ1442062
Database: ERIC
Description
Abstract:The adulteration of food products, including honeys and syrups, is of growing concern in global food markets. Detecting adulterated food products can be difficult using traditional analytical methodologies because of complex sample matrices or poor separation of key compounds. NMR is an analytical tool that circumvents some of these issues by providing a snapshot of chemical components in a sample mixture with minimal and unbiased sample preparation. In this upper-year undergraduate and graduate laboratory, students are introduced to NMR as an analytical tool through the analysis of a honey or syrup sample of their choice. Simple sugars in honeys or syrups are quantified using a single point internal standard, while the NMR signals arising from the complex organic mixture of amino acids, proteins, carbohydrates, and oils found in these syrups are compared against a sample data set using principal component analysis. The experiment highlights the benefits and challenges of NMR as an analytical tool, demonstrating the simplicity of sample preparation and single-point calibration, as well as the limitations of instrument sensitivity and signal resolving power.
ISSN:0021-9584
1938-1328
DOI:10.1021/acs.jchemed.2c00501