Raman is a fast alternative to the typically performed HPLC, FT-IR, colorimetric, and time consuming wet chemical identification of structurally similar sugars.
Metrohm true handheld Raman spectrometer is perfectly capable of identifying of sugars such as D-galactose, D-glucose, D-maltose, D-mannose, D-sorbitol, fructose, sucrose and inositol.
Rapid and non-destructive determination takes place after a suitable spectral database has been created. Measurements with Metrohm Instant Raman Analyzer (Mira) require no sample preparation and provide immediate and unambiguous results.
Today’s industry, but also daily life, cannot be imagined without sugar. Sugars are used by chemical manufacturers in reactions, by food makers as a flavor and by pharmaceutical drug makers as preservatives, stabilizers, and masking agents for medications.
Sugar is a generic term for saccharide and there are three general groups of saccharides: monosaccharides, disaccharides, and polysaccharides.
Monosaccharides are the simplest carbohydrate forms and consist of single sugar moieties that become the building blocks for the other saccharide groups. Common monosaccharides are fructose (fruit sugar), glucose (dextrose), galactose (milk sugar).
Disaccharides contain two monosaccharides or twice the sugar moieties. The most common are sucrose (glucose + fructose), lactose (galactose + glucose), and maltose (glucose + glucose).
By contrast, polysaccharides are characterized by a repeating pattern of polymerized monosaccharides or disaccharides and result in materials such as cellulose, starches, and glycogen.
In this study (download the PDF below), a fast alternative to the typically performed HPLC, FT-IR, colorimetric, and time consuming wet chemical identification and confirmation of commonly used, structurally similar sugars is shown.
