TOPIC
TO STUDY THE PRESENCE OF OXALATE
ION CONTENT IN GUAVA FRUIT.
DONE BY:
SHWETA PATEL
INDEX
TABLE OF CONTENTS:
AIM……………………………………………..
INTRODUCTION………………………………
THEORY……………………………………….
REQUIREMENTS……………………………...
CHEMICAL EQUATIONS…………………….
PROCEDURE…………………………………..
PRECAUTIONS………………………………..
OBSERVATIONS……………………………...
CALCULATIONS……………………………...
RESULT………………………………………..
CONCLUSION…………………………………
BIBILIOGRAPHY……………………………..
AIM OF THE PROJECT :
To study the presence of oxalate ion content
in guava fruit at different stages of ripening. Also, we will
learn how its amount varies during different stages of
ripening.
INTRODUCTION :
Guava is a common sweet fruit found in India and
many other places around the world.
Guavas are plants in the Myrtle family (Myrtaceae)
genus Psidium (meaning “pomegranate” in Latin),
which contains about 100 species of tropical shrub.
On ripening it turns yellow in color.
Rich in vitamin C, this fruit is a rich source of
oxalate ion whose content varies during the different
stages of ripening.
Guavas have a pronounced and typical fragrance,
similar to lemon rind but less in strength.
WHAT IS OXALATE ION? :
It is a carboxylic acid, primarily found in plants and
animals.
It is not an essential molecule and It is excreted form
our body, unchanged.
Our body either produces oxalate on its own or
converts other molecules like vitamin C to oxalate.
External sources like food also contribute to the
accumulation of oxalate in our body.
The oxalate present in the body is excreted in the
form of urine as waste.
Too much of oxalate in our urine results in a medical
condition called (hyperoxaluria), commonly referred
to as kidney stones.
Diet is looked upon as a preventive measure in
addition to medication to treat kidney stones.
Theory :
Oxalate ions are extracted from the fruit by boiling pulp
with dilute H2SO4 .
The oxalate ions are estimated volumetrically, by
titrating the solution with KMnO4 solution.
REQUIREMENTS :
100ml measuring flask
Pestle and mortar
Beaker(250ml)
Titration flask
Funnel
Burette
Weight box
Pipette
Filter paper
Dilute H2So4
0.05 KMnO4 solution
Guava fruits at different stages of ripening.
PROCEDURE :
1. Weighed 50 g of fresh guava and crushed it to a fine
pulp using pestle and mortar.
2. Transferred the crushed pulp to a beaker and added
about 50 ml dilute H2SO4 to it.
3. Boiled the content for about 10 minutes. Cooled and
filtered the contents in a 100 ml measuring flask.
4. Made up the volume 100 ml by adding ample amount
of distilled water.
5. Took 20 ml of the solution from the flask and added
20 ml of dilute sulphuric acid to it.
6. Heated the mixture to about 60°C and titrated it
against (N/10) KMnO4 solution taken in a burette till
the end point had an appearance of pink colour.
7. Repeated the above experiment with 50 g of 1 day, 2
day and 3 day old guava fruits.
PRECAUTIONS :
There should be no parallax while taking
measurements.
Spillage of chemicals should be checked.
Avoid the use of burette having a rubber tap as
KMnO4 attacks rubber.
In order to get some idea about the temperature
of the solution touch the flask with the back side of
your hand, when it becomes unbearable to touch the
required temperature is reached.
Add about an equal volume of dil H2SO4 to the
guava extract to be titrated (say a full test tube)
before adding KMnO4 .
Read the upper meniscus while taking burette
reading with KMnO4 solution.
In case, on addition of KMnO4 a brown ppt.
appears, this shows that either H2SO4 has not been
added or has been added in insufficient amount. In
such a case, throw away the solution and titrate again.
