Spectroscopic Analysis of Some Food Dyes by Infrared and Laser

Abstract

Most food dyes are used to color confectionery and beverages. Children and adolescents are often the target group for such colored products. Their presence in everyday life can be used as a motivator. Given that sugary foods are often included in discussions about nutrition, a closer examination of their components may be suitable for scientific research. There is also an acceptable daily intake for most dyes. The popularity of colored supermarket products justifies quantitative and qualitative spectroscopic studies of these dyes to study their internal composition and their effects on human health in general. In university education, understanding the basic principles of spectroscopic techniques is often challenging due to the lack of connections to the real world. Therefore, the present contribution presents context-based applications of infrared spectroscopy for food color analyses through which researchers can improve their skills with regard to this method. The spectroscopic determination of food dyes appears to be a promising approach due to the long tradition and presence of dyes in food products. The required spectroscopic data for commonly used dyes are provided for educational use. Qualitative and quantitative analyses of food colorants from twenty different origins of food colorants were used to study their spectral and compositional properties using infrared spectroscopy (IR) in the range (400-4000) cm-1. A small detection system was designed that included an infrared laser source (IR) in the range (800-1100nm) and a spectrometer to measure the intensity of the absorbed radiation. The results showed that these techniques provide accurate and rapid methods for the analysis of dyes without the need for complicated sample preparations. This study contributes to improving the scientific understanding of these dyes and supporting their industrial and educational applications.