Muhammad Hasan Ansari

Applied Chemistry, UoK

Feb 2016
EXPERIMENT # 01
OBJECT: DETERMINATION OF VITAMIN C
Chemicals:
1) 0.1 N Iodine solution
2) starch indicator
Observation:
Ob.
No.
1
2
3
4

Initial Reading
(ml)
0
3.5
6.7
10

Final Reading
(ml)
3.5
6.7
10
13.2

Difference
(ml)
3.5
3.2
3.3
3.2

Concordant Reading=3.2ml
Calculations:
34ml of 0.1N iodine solution required 300mg Vitamin C
3.2ml of 0.1N iodine solution required (300mg/34ml)x3.2ml Vitamin C
3.2ml of 0.1N iodine solution required =28.235mg Vitamin C
25ml vitamin C solution contains 28.235mg vitamin C
250ml vitamin C solution contains (28.235mg/25ml)x250ml vitamin C
250ml vitamin C solution contains =282.3mg vitamin C
% yield:
% yield=(282.3/500)x100
% yield = 56%
Result:
Vitamin C is found to be 56%.

Vitamin C
Vitamin C, also known as ascorbic acid, is a water-soluble vitamin. It is a naturally
occurring organic compound with antioxidant properties. It is a white solid, but impure
samples can appear yellowish. Unlike most mammals and other animals, humans do not have
the ability to make ascorbic acid and must obtain vitamin C from the diet.
You need vitamin C for the growth and repair of tissues in all parts of your body. It is a
potent antioxidant. It helps the body make collagen, an important protein used to make skin,
cartilage, tendons, ligaments, and blood vessels. Inside our bodies, it functions as an essential
cofactor in numerous enzymatic reactions. Vitamin C is needed for healing wounds, and for
repairing and maintaining bones and teeth. It also helps the body absorb iron from non-heme
sources.
Vitamin C plays a role in protecting against the following:

Heart Disease
High Blood Pressure
Common Cold
Cancer
Osteoarthritis
Age-related Macular Degeneration

Formula:
IUPAC name:
Chemical name:
Common name:

C6H8O6
2-oxo-L-threo-hexono-1,4-lactone-2,3-enediol
Ascorbic acid (also L-ascorbic acid)
Vitamin C

STRUCTURE:

Industrial Applications:
1. Because of its antioxidant properties, the food industry uses it as an antioxidant food
additive, its primary commercial function. The fat-soluble esters of ascorbic acid with
long-chain fatty acids (ascorbyl palmitate or ascorbyl stearate) can be used as food
antioxidants.
2. About one-third of total production is used for vitamin preparations in the
pharmaceutical industry.
3. It is easily oxidized and so is used as a reductant in photographic developer solutions
(among others) and as a preservative.
4. In fluorescence microscopy and related fluorescence-based techniques, ascorbic acid
can be used as an antioxidant to increase fluorescent signal and chemically retard dye
photobleaching.
5. In plastic manufacturing, ascorbic acid can be used to assemble molecular chains
more quickly and with less waste than traditional synthesis methods.
6. In meatprocessing ascorbic acid makes it possible to reduce both the amount of added
nitrite and the residual nitrite content in the product and to preserve the color of the
meat product.

7. As a nutrient for fortification of food and beverages.

8. It is used to negate the effects of iodine tablets in water purification. It reacts with the
sterilized water, removing the taste, color, and smell of the iodine.
References:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vitamin_C
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ascorbic_acid
http://umm.edu/health/medical/altmed/supplement/vitamin-c-ascorbic-acid
http://lpi.oregonstate.edu/mic/vitamins/vitamin-C#references
https://www.thechemco.com/chemical/ascorbic-acid/

(Not For Teachers)

Plant foods are definitely different from animal foods when it comes to their iron content. In
animal foods, iron is often attached to proteins called heme proteins, and referred to as heme
iron. In plant foods, iron is not attached to heme proteins and is classified as non-heme iron.
Heme iron is typically absorbed at a rate of 7-35%. Non-heme iron is typically absorbed at a
rate of 2-20%.