15C-25 |
Rapid estimation of caffeine content in Tea, Coffee and soft drinks by FTIR-ATR spectroscopic method |
M. M. PARADKAR and J. M. K. Irudayaraj. Dept. of Agricultural & Biological Engineering, Pennsylvania State Univ., 235 Agricultural Engineering Bldg., University Park, PA 16802 Caffeine is an alkaloid, classified as a central nervous system stimulant, ingredient in many soft drinks and also present naturally in tea and coffee. Caffeine has many side effects such as altering sleep patterns, induces headaches, nervousness, dizziness, and also affects gastrointestinal functions. Hence, monitoring the caffeine content is important from a health and nutritional prospective. The main aim of this study was to investigate the potential application of FTIR spectroscopy to estimate caffeine content in tea, coffee and soft drinks. Bio-Rad FTS 6000 spectrophotometer equipped with DTGS detector and ATR accessory was used for FTIR measurements. FTIR region between 2800 and 3000 cm-1 was found to be most suitable and used for statistical analysis for quantification of caffeine. FTIR was efficient in predicting caffeine contents with R2> 0.99 in tea and coffee, and R2> 0.97 for different soft drinks.This FTIR method has advantages in the respect of direct and rapid estimation of caffeine from soft drinks, where as in case of tea and coffee minimum sample preparation (extracted in hot water) was necessary. Application of this technique as an automated online system for quantification of caffeine in soft drinks is foreseen.
Session 15C, Food Chemistry: Food composition and analysis
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