Instruments used in flavors production

Refractive index/brix density meter

measures the extent to which light bends as it passes through a liquid sample.

reports in degrees of brix

Density Meter/Densitometer

Measures the mass per unit volume of a liquid or gas

Good for authenticating essential oils and solvents being used

pH meter

measures the activity of hydrogen ions in a solution, indicating its acidity or alkalinity.
>7 more basic
<7 more acidic

Flash Point Tester

Determines the lowest temperature at which a substance's vapors will ignite when exposed to an ignition source.

Important to determine shipping procedure as well as considering the application to be used in.

Karl Fisher Titration

Uses Karl Fischer reagents to detect/determine water activity in a sample.

Not much is needed for a sample but keep in mind the sample amount used is destroyed.

Moisture Analyzer

Uses loss on drying method to determine moisture in product

Spectrophotometer / Colorimeter

measures how much light a sample absorbs or transmits at specific wavelengths

Water Activity Meter

measures the vapor pressure of water in a sealed sample relative to the vapor pressure of pure water at the same temperature.

Want below 0.95 to inhibit micro growth

Helps determine how stable a product is or how spoiled it is (microbial growth)

Gas Chromatography (GC)

physical separation method in where volatile mixtures are separated and analyzed

An Inert or unreactive gas is used (helium or nitrogen). The analyte (product being tested) reacts with the wall of the column and is coated with different stationary phases. As the chemicals exit the end of the column they are identified electronically. The time these chemicals exit the column is known as retention time and thus can be identified. There are many parameters that can affect retention time such as temp, carrier gas, column length, and flow.

GC-O (Gas Chromatography Olfactometry)

Separates volatile compounds and then uses an olfactometer (human) to detect what components are in a compound

GC FID (Flame Ionization Detector)

Instrument that destroys the chemical by oxidizing it in a gas flame

When the analyte reaches the flame carried via a gas, it becomes ionized and that electrical charge is recorded and identified. The flame is lit via hydrogen (the simplest gas)

Gas Chromatography Mass Spectrometer (GCMS)

A mass spec is an instrument that breaks down a molecule into characteristic fragments

Ionized chemical molecules and sorts the resulting ions based on their mass-to-charge ratio

Good for determining quality. Breaks down chemicals by molecule and weighs those molecules which can be measured and charted. This all depends on the quality of the library being used. (example beings that many compounds are displayed and is required to estimate and look up the CAS number). Some chemicals may also appear such as acetals and other loose components.

HPLC (High Performance Liquid Chromatography)

technique for separating non-volatile or heat sensitive compounds in a liquid solution

Useful for nonvolatile components such as capsaicin, colors, savory enhancers, salts as opposed to gassy volatile components. Can also detect adulterations in citrus oils.

SPME (Solid Phase Micro Extraction)

solvent-free sample preparation techniques used to isolate volatile compounds for analysis, typically by GC

SPDE (Solid Phase Dynamic Extraction)

Coated needle is exposed to headspace absorbing volatile chemicals

Particle Size Analysis

determines the distribution of particle sizes within a powder or suspension

Measures the size of the encapsulation (micron size). Can help determine how well a product is encapsulated. A micro size of <1 is quite stable

Turbidity Meter

measures the cloudiness or haziness of a fluid caused by the presence of suspended particles

useful for dtermining water quality and clarity (cloudiness)

FTIR Spectroscopy (Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy)

measures how a sample absorbs infrared light across a range of wavelengths

Used for identifying water, solid, or gas content in a material. Can also provide qualitative results.

Viscometer

Measures a fluid's resistance to flow, or its viscosity

Measures the viscosity (flow rate) of a compound. Important for glazes, ocing, syrups, etc.

Polarimater

measures the angle of rotation of plane-polarized light as it passes through an optically active substance

Good for determining purity

Titratable Acidity

Measures the total amount of acid in a solution

Salt Analysis

Determines the concentration of salt in a product

NMR (Nuclear Magnetic Resonance)

analytical technique that exploits the magnetic properties of certain atomic nuclei, most commonly hydrogen (1H) and carbon (13C)