Saccharimeter
Definition
A polarimeter calibrated in International Sugar Degrees (°Z) rather than angular degrees; used in the sugar industry for purity determination under the Codex CXS 212 and FSSAI standards; pure sucrose reads exactly 100 °Z at standard conditions.
- Type
- Polarimeter calibrated in sugar degrees
- Unit
- International Sugar Degrees (°Z)
- Application
- Sugar purity determination
- Relevant standards
- Codex CXS 212, FSSAI
- Pure sucrose reading
- 100 °Z
Common questions
How does a saccharimeter differ from a general polarimeter?+
Both measure optical rotation of a substance in solution, but a saccharimeter's scale is specifically calibrated against pure sucrose, reading directly in sugar degrees rather than raw angular degrees, which simplifies purity assessment in the sugar industry.
Why would a saccharimeter appear in forensic case work?+
Adulteration or mislabelling of sugar and syrup products can be investigated by comparing the measured optical rotation against the expected reading for pure sucrose, since impurities or substituted sugars shift the rotation away from the standard value.
Related terms
- Biot Equation
- The fundamental equation of polarimetry: [α]_T^λ = α / (c × l), relating observed rotation to specific rotation, concentration, and path length;...
- Chirality
- The property of a molecule that cannot be superimposed on its mirror image; a chiral molecule and its mirror image are enantiomers...
- Dextrorotatory (+)
- Rotating the plane of polarisation clockwise (to the right) as seen facing the light source; designated (+) or d-; the d-methamphetamine and...
- Enantiomeric Excess (Ee)
- A measure of chiral purity: ee (%) = (R - S)/(R + S) x 100, where R and S are the measured...
- Enantiomers
- Two molecules that are non-superimposable mirror images of each other; they have identical physical properties (melting point, boiling point, solubility) except for...
- Invert Sugar
- The equimolar mixture of glucose and fructose produced by hydrolysis (inversion) of sucrose; laevorotatory overall because fructose's negative rotation exceeds glucose's positive...
- Laevorotatory (-)
- Rotating the plane of polarisation anticlockwise (to the left) as seen facing the light source; designated (-) or l-; l-methamphetamine and natural...
- Laurent Half-Shade Polarimeter
- A classical polarimeter design that uses a half-wave plate covering half the aperture to create two adjacent half-fields; the null point (equal...
- OIML R 139
- International Organisation of Legal Metrology Recommendation R 139 (2014) governing metrological requirements for polarimeters used in official testing; specifies maximum permissible error...
- Optical Rotation (α)
- The angle in degrees through which a chiral solution rotates the plane of polarisation of a plane-polarised light beam; measured by rotating...
- Specific Optical Rotation ([α])
- The standardised optical rotation of a substance at a defined temperature and wavelength, calculated from the Biot equation: [α] = α /...