NEYVELI

(AFFLIATED TO C.B.S.E)

SESSION : 2014-2015

Study of effect of Potassium bisulphite as

a food preservative

Submitted to Submitted by
MRS.D.SANGEETHA N.R.ARUN
KAUSHIK
Chemistry Teacher, S.BALAJI
CLASS 12, JHSS V.MANOJ PREVEEN
Class-12, Section-A
This is to certify that the project work titled “Study
of effect of Potassium bisulphite as a food
preservative” submitted by S.BALAJI (class XIIth - PCM
group) in partial fulfilment of the credit for the
chemistry project evaluation from “JAWAHAR HIGHER
SECONDARY SCHOOL, NEYVELI” , is the bonafide work of
the student done under the guidance and supervision of
Mrs.D.Sangeetha, Chemistry Teacher,JHSS during
session 2014-2015, as a project report.
NAME: SUBJECT:
REGISTRATION NO. : CLASS:
DATE: PLACE:

INTERNAL EXAMINER EXTERNAL EXAMINER

 Our project can never begin without you, dear GOD.
Rather than saying “thank you” to you, you know that we
feel like saying ‘I love you’, to you, always.
We must say thanks to our parents who provided us
sufficient money and help in making of this project.
Mrs.D.Sangeetha, you are the real foundation of the
project done by us. Thank you very much. Special thanks to
our Principal, our Vice Principal and our chemistry teachers,
Mr.C.H.Anil Reddy and Mr.G.Venkatesh who gave support to
us and library which provides all useful books related to
this project.
Next on our thank list are our friends, teachers who
really showered constructive feedbacks and suggestions
without which this project would not have been in present
form.

N.R.ARUN KAUSHIK

V.MANOJ PREVEEN

S.BALAJI
We hereby declare that the project work entitled

“Study of effect of Potassium bisulphite as a food

preservative” submitted to the “DAV ACC PUBLIC

SCHOOL” is a record of original work done by us,

except for quotations and summaries which have been

duly acknowledged, under the guidance of "Mrs.D.

Sangeetha, Chemistry Teacher, JHSS ". The project

has not been accepted for any credits based on

investigatory projects previously.

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 The objective of this project is to study
the effect of Potassium bisulphite as a food
preservative under various conditions.

Concentration

Conditions

Time Temperature
 Growth of microorganisms in a food material can be inhibited by adding
certain chemical substances. However the chemical substances should not be
harmful to human beings. Such chemical substances which are added to food
materials to prevent their spoilage are known as chemical preservatives.
In our country, two chemical preservatives which are permitted for use are:

1. Benzoic acid(or sodium benzoate)

2. Sulphur dioxide(or potassium bisulphite)

Benzoic acid or its sodium salt, sodium benzoate is commonly used for the
preservation of food materials. For the preservation of fruits, fruit juices,
squashes and jams sodium benzoate is used as preservative because it
is soluble in water and hence easily mixes with the food product.

Potassium bisulphite is used for the preservation of

colourless food materials such as fruit juices, squashes, apple and raw
mango chutney. This is not used for preserving coloured food materials
because Sulphur dioxide produced from this chemical is a bleaching
agent. Potassium bisulphite on reaction with acid of the juice liberates
Sulphur dioxide which is very effective in killing the harmful micro-
organisms present in food stuffs and thus prevents it from getting spoilt.
 HSO3–(aq) + H+(aq) H2O(l) + SO2(g)

The advantage of this method is that no harmful chemical is left in the

food. The Manitoba Agriculture, Food and Rural Initiatives reports
that this product works to prevent the growth of mould, yeast
and bacteria in foods. It is also an additive for homemade wine.
Potassium bisulphite is found in some cold drinks and fruit juice
concentrates. Sulphites are common preservatives in smoked or processed
meats and dried fruits. In spray form, it may help prevent foods from
discolouring or browning.
 The aim of this project is to study the
effect of potassium bisulphite as food
preservative.
i. At different temperatures.
ii. At different concentrations and
iii. For different intervals of time.
Food materials undergo natural changes due
to temperature, time and enzymatic action
and become unfit for consumption. These
changes may be checked by adding small
amounts of potassium bisulphite. The
effectiveness of KHSO3 as preservative
depends upon its concentration under different
conditions which may be determined
experimentally. An ideal method of food
preservation has the following characteristics:
#1.It improves shelf-life and safety by
inactivating spoilage and pathogenic
microorganisms,
#2.It does not change organoleptic (smell, taste,
colour, texture, etc.) and nutritional attributes,
#3.It does not leave residues,
#4.It is cheap and convenient to apply and
#5.It encounters no objection from consumers
and legislators.
1. Take fresh fruits, wash them
thoroughly with water and peel off
their outer cover.
2. Grind it to a paste in the mortar with

a pestle.
3. Mix with sugar and colouring matter.

4. The material so obtained is fruit jam.

It may be used to study the

effect of concentration of sugar
and KHSO3, temperature and time.

(A)Effect of concentration of Sugar: -

1. Take three wide mouthed reagent bottles labeled
as I II III.Put 100 gms of fruit jam in each bottle.
2. Add 5.0 gms, 10.0 gms and 15.0 gms of sugar to
bottle No. I, II and III respectively.
3. Add 0.5 gm of KHSO3 to each bottle.
4. Mix contents thoroughly with a stirring rod.
 5. Close the bottle and allow them to stand for one
week or 10 days at room temperature.
6. Observe the changes taking place in Jam every day.

RECORD:

Result: The increase in concentration of sugar

causes fast decaying

(B)Effect of concentration of KHSO3 :–

Bottle Wt. of Wt. of Wt. of Observations (Days)

No. jam taken sugar KHSO3 1 2 3 4 5
added

I 100 gms 5.00 gms 0.5gm NO NO NO Few Few

Change Change Change Change More
Change

II 100 gms 10.00 gms 0.5 gm NO NO Few Some Few

Change Change Change Change more
Change

III 100 gms 15.00 gms 0.5 gm NO Few Few Some More
Change Change Change Change Change

1. Put 100 gm of Jam in each bottle.

2. Add 5.0 gm of sugar to each bottle.
3. Take bottles labeled as I, II, III.
4. Add 1.0 gm, 2.0 gm and 3.0 gm of KHSO3 to bottle
No. I, II and III respectively.
 5. Mix the contents thoroughly with a glass rod.
6. Keep all the bottles at room temperature for about
10 days and observe the changes everyday.

RECORD:

Result: The increase in concentration of KHSO3

increase more time of preservation

Bottle Wt. of Wt. of Wt. of Observations (Days)

No. jam taken sugar KHSO3
added 1 2 3 4 5

I 100 gms 5.00 gms 1.0gm no no no few some

II 100 gms 5.00 gms 2.0gm no no no no few

III 100 gms 5.00 gms 3.0 gm no no no no no

(C)Effect of temperature: –
1. Take 100 gm of Jam in three bottles lebelled as I,
II and III.
2. Add 10.0 gm of sugar and 2.0 gm of KHSO3 to
bottle No. I, II and III respectively.
3. Mix the contents thoroughly with a stirring rod.
 4. Keep bottle No. I in the refrigerator at 0˚C,
bottle No. II at room temperature (25˚C) and
bottle No. III in a thermostat at 50˚C. Observe
the changes taking place in the jam for 10 days.
RECORD:

Result: The increase in temperature causes

faster fermentation of jam.

Bottle Wt. of Wt. of Wt. of Observations (Days)

No. jam sugar KHSO3
taken
added 1 2 3 4 5

I 100 gms 10.00 2.0gm No No No No No

gms change change change change change
II 100 gms 10.00 2.0 gm No No No No Slight
gms change change change change change
III 100 gms 10.00 2.0 gm No No Slight Some Some
gms change change change change more
change

(D)Effect of time: –
1. Take three bottles and label them as I, II and III.
2. To each bottle add 25 g of Jam and 1 g of
potassium bisulphite.
 3. Keep bottle I for 7 days, bottle II for 14 days and
bottle III for 21 days at room temperature.
4. Note the changes taking place in each bottle and
record the observations.

RECORD:

Result: With increase of days, the quality of the

jam deteriorates.

Observations(Days)
Bottle No. 7 14 21
I No ****** ******

II No Taste ******
changes

III No No Unpleasant smell

develops
From the experiment, we can conclude that
KHSO3 acts as a viable food preservative whose
increased concentration can increase time for
preservation. But increase in concentration of
sugar content in the food material causes fast
decaying. Also, the experiment shows that rate
of fermentation of food stuffs is directly
proportional to temperature conditions. On
passage of time, even in the presence of KHSO3,
the food gets spoiled. Though potassium
bisulphite is a good food preservative (class II
preservative), it can trigger lung irritation and
asthma. So, our suggestion is that the usage of
food preservatives must be reduced to the
extent possible.

Reference books:
  NCERT CLASS 12 CHEMISTRY BOOKS-
PART I, II
 CONCISE INORGANIC CHEMISTRY -
BY J.D.LEE
 NCERT LABORATORY MANUAL -
CLASS 12 CHEMISTRY
Reference websites:
 www.google.co.in
 en.wikipedia.org
 www.ncert.nic.in
 www.livestrong.com