Introduction

Human body is like a machine. It requires food as fuel to keep it going. Food containing
correct proportions of the basic ingredients of good nutrition i.e. carbohydrates, fats, proteins,
minerals and vitamins are known as a balanced diet. Lack of any of these essential
ingredients leads to many disease .Fruits and vegetable are always a part of balanced
diet. That means fruits and vegetables provide our body the essential nutrients.
Again their presence in these is being indicated by some of our general
observations, like -freshly cut apples become reddish black after some time.
Explanation for it is that iron present in apple gets oxidized to iron oxide. So, we
can conclude that fruits and vegetables contain complex organic compounds, for
e.g., chlorophyll, esters(flavouring compounds), carbohydrates, vitamins and can
be tested in any fruits or vegetable by extracting out its juice and then subjecting it
to various tests which are for detection of different classes of organic compounds.
Detection of minerals in vegetables or fruits means detection of elements other
than carbon, hydrogen and oxygen.

Fruits: A fruit is usually any sweet-tasting plant product, especially those

associated with seeds. Fruits are generally high in fibre, water, vitamin C and
sugars, although this latter varies widely from traces as in lime, to 61% of the
fresh weight of the date. Regular consumption of fruit is associated with
reduced risks of cancer, cardiovascular disease (especially coronary heart
disease), stroke, Alzheimer disease, cataracts, and some of the functional
declines associated with aging. Diets that include a sufficient amount of
potassium from fruits and vegetables also help reduce the chance of
developing kidney stones and may help reduce the effects of bone-loss. Fruits
are also low in calories which would help lower one's calorie intake as part of
a weight-loss diet.

Vegetables: A vegetable is an edible plant or part of a plant, but usually

excludes seeds and most sweet fruit. This typically means the leaf, stem, or
root of a plant. Vegetables are eaten in a variety of ways, as part of main
meals and as snacks. The nutritional content of vegetables varies
considerably, though generally they contain little protein or fat, and varying
proportions of vitamins such as Vitamin A, Vitamin K and Vitamin B6,
provitamins, dietary minerals and carbohydrates.

Juice: Juice is a liquid that is naturally contained in fruit and vegetables.

Juice is prepared by mechanically squeezing or macerating fruit or vegetable
flesh. For example, orange juice is the liquid extract of the fruit of the orange
tree, and tomato juice is the liquid that results from pressing the fruit of the
tomato plant. Juice may be prepared in the home from fresh fruit and
vegetables using a variety of hand or electric juicers

Components of Food and Tests for Detection Carbohydrates: A carbohydrate is the most abundant natural organic
compound that consists only of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen, usually
with a hydrogen: oxygen atom ratio of 2:1; in other words, with the
empirical formula Cm(H2O)n. They are the chief source of energy in our
diet. They are chemical compound containing carbon, hydrogen and
oxygen. They provide instant energy to our body. however, no
carbohydrate is an essential nutrient in humans. Carbohydrates are not
necessary building blocks of other molecules, and the body can obtain
all its energy from protein and fats.

Proteins: Proteins are large biological molecules consisting of one or more

chains of amino acids. Proteins perform a vast array of functions within
living organisms, including catalyzing metabolic reactions, replicating DNA,
responding to stimuli, and transporting molecules from one location to
another. Proteins differ from one another primarily in their sequence of
amino acids, which is dictated by the nucleotide sequence of their genes, and
which usually results in folding of the protein into a specific threedimensional structure that determines its activity.
Most microorganisms and plants can biosynthesize all 20 standard amino
acids, while animals (including humans) must obtain some of the amino acids
from the diet. The amino acids that an organism cannot synthesize on its own
are referred to as essential amino acids. Key enzymes that synthesize certain
amino acids are not present in animals such as aspartokinase, which
catalyzes

the

first

step

in

the

synthesis

of lysine,

methionine,and threonine from aspartate. If amino acids are present in the

environment, microorganisms can conserve energy by taking up the amino
acids

from

their

surroundings

and downregulating their

biosynthetic

pathways.
In animals, amino acids are obtained through the consumption of foods
containing protein. Ingested proteins are then broken down into amino acids
through digestion, which typically involves denaturation of the protein
through exposure to acid and hydrolysis by enzymes called proteases. Some
ingested amino acids are used for protein biosynthesis, while others are

converted to glucose throughgluconeogenesis, or fed into the citric acid

cycle.

This

use

of

protein

as

fuel

is

particularly

important

under starvation conditions as it allows the body's own proteins to be used to

support life, particularly those found in muscle. Amino acids are also an
important dietary source of nitrogen

Starch: Starch or amylum is a carbohydrate consisting of a large number of

glucose units joined by glycosidic bonds. This polysaccharide is produced by
all green plants as an energy store. It is the most common carbohydrate in the
human diet and is contained in large amounts in such staple foods as
potatoes, wheat, maize (corn), rice, and cassava.
Pure starch is a white, tasteless and odourless powder that is insoluble in cold
water or alcohol. It consists of two types of molecules: the linear and helical
amylose and the branched amylopectin. Depending on the plant, starch
generally contains 20 to 25% amylose and 75 to 80% amylopectin by weight.
Glycogen, the glucose store of animals, is a more branched version of
amylopectin.

In photosynthesis, plants use light energy to produce glucose from carbon

dioxide. The glucose is stored mainly in the form of starch granules,
in plastids such as chloroplasts and especially amyloplasts. Toward the end of

the growing season, starch accumulates in twigs of trees near the

buds. Fruit, seeds, rhizomes, and tubers store starch to prepare for the next
growing season.
Glucose is soluble in water, hydrophilic, binds with water, takes up a lot of
space and is osmotically active; glucose in the form of starch, on the other
hand, is not soluble, therefore osmotically inactive and can be stored much
more compactly.
Glucose molecules are bound in starch by the easily hydrolyzed alpha bonds.
The

same

type

of

bond

is

polysaccharide glycogen.

This

is

found
in

in

contrast

the

animal

to

many

reserve
structural

polysaccharides such as chitin, cellulose and peptidoglycan, which are bound

by beta bonds and are much more resistant to hydrolysis.

Litmus is a water-soluble mixture of different dyes extracted from lichens,

especially Roccella tinctoria. It is absorbed onto filter paper to produce one of
the oldest forms of pH indicator, used to test materials for acidity. Blue
litmus paper turns red under acidic conditions and red litmus paper turns blue
under basic (i.e. alkaline) conditions, with the colour change occurring over
the pH range 4.5-8.3 at 25 C. Neutral litmus paper is purple. Litmus can also
be prepared as an aqueous solution that functions similarly. Under acidic
conditions the solution is red, and under basic conditions the solution is blue.

Litmus can be found in different species of lichens.The dyes would be

extracted

from

such

species

as Roccella

tinctoria, Roccella

fuciformis, Roccellapygmaea , Roccellaphycopsis, Lecanora

artarea, Variolaria

dealbata, Ochrolechia

parella, Parmotrema

tinctorum and Parmelia. Currently, the main sources are Roccella montagnei
and Dendrographa leucophoea.

The main use of litmus is to test whether a solution is acidic or basic. Wet
litmus paper can also be used to test water-soluble gases; the gas dissolves in
the water and the resulting solution colors the litmus paper. For
instance, ammonia gas, which is alkaline, colors the red litmus paper blue.

Chemical reactions other than acid-base reaction can also cause a colorchange to litmus paper. For instance, chlorine gas turns blue litmus paper

white the litmus paper is bleached, due to presence of hypochlorite ions.

This reaction is irreversible and therefore the litmus is not acting as an
indicator in this situation.

10

Samples chosen for the experiment

Pomegranate

11

12

Objective Of Project
To plan for the balanced diet, knowledge of various ingredients of fruits and
vegetables is necessary. In this project , we aim to have knowledge about
contents of different fruits.
We have decided to investigate if fruits contain starch, carbohydrates
,proteins and acidic content.

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Theory
Test: Fehling's test.
Fehling's is always prepared fresh in the laboratory. It is made initially as two
separate solutions, known as Fehling's A and Fehling's B. Fehling's A is a
blue aqueous solution of copper(II) sulphate, while Fehling's B is a clear
solution of aqueous potassium sodium tartrate (also known as Rochelle salt)
and a strong alkali (commonly sodium hydroxide).
Equal volumes of the two mixtures are mixed to get the final Fehling's
solution, which is a deep blue colour. In this final mixture, aqueous tartrate
ions from the dissolved Rochelle salt chelate to Cu2+ (aq) ions from the
dissolved

copper(II)

sulphate,

as

bidentate

ligands

giving

the

bistartratocuprate(II)4- complex as shown below. The tartarate ions, by

complexing copper prevent the formation of Cu(OH)2 from the reaction of
CuSO4.2H2O and NaOH present in the solution.

14

Fehling's can be used to determine whether a carbonyl-containing compound

is an aldehyde or a ketone. The bistartratocuprate(II) complex in Fehling's
solution is an oxidizing agent and the active reagent in the test. The
compound to be tested is added to the Fehling's solution and the mixture is
heated. Aldehydes are oxidized, giving a positive result, but ketones do not
react, unless they are alpha-hydroxy-ketones. The bistartratocuprate(II)
complex oxidizes the aldehyde to a carboxylate anion, and in the process the
copper(II) ions of the complex are reduced to copper(I) ions. Red copper(I)
oxide then precipitates out of the reaction mixture, which indicates a positive
result i.e. that redox has taken place. A negative result is the absence of the
red precipitate; it is important to note that Fehling's will not work
with aromatic aldehydes; in this case Tollens' reagent should be used.
Fehling's test can be used as a generic test for monosaccharides. It will give a
positive result for aldose monosaccharides (due to the oxidisable aldehyde
group) but also for ketose monosaccharides, as they are converted
to aldoses by the base in the reagent, and then give a positive result. For this
reason, Fehling's reagent is sometimes referred to as a general test for
monosaccharides.

15

Test: Ninhydrin test

Ninhydrin (2,2-Dihydroxyindane-1,3-dione) is a chemical used to detect
ammonia or primary and secondary amines. When reacting with these free
amines, a deep blue or purple color known as Ruhemann's purple is
produced. It is a white solid which is soluble in ethanol and acetone at room
temperature. Ninhydrin can be considered as the hydrate of indane-1,2,3trione.. When about 0.5 mL of a 0.1% solution of ninhydrin is boiled for one
or two minutes with a few mL of dilute amino acid or protein solution, a blue
color develops. This is due to the condensation of Ninhydrin with Ammonia
and Hydrinantin.

Ninhydrin can also be used to monitor deprotection in solid phase peptide

synthesis (Kaiser Test). The chain is linked via its C-terminus to the solid
support, with the N-terminus extending off it. When that nitrogen is
deprotected, a ninhydrin test yields blue. Amino-acid residues are attached

16

with their N-terminus protected, so if the next residue has been successfully
coupled onto the chain, the test gives a colorless or yellow result.
Ninhydrin is also used in amino acid analysis of proteins. Most of the amino
acids, except proline, are hydrolyzed and react with ninhydrin. Also, certain
amino acid chains are degraded. Therefore, separate analysis is required for
identifying such amino acids that either react differently or do not react at all
with ninhydrin. The rest of the amino acids are then quantified
colorimetrically after separation by chromatography.

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Iodine test
As a result of its bond angles starch forms a coiled spring like structure.
Iodine is not very soluble in water, therefore the iodine reagent is made by
dissolving iodine in water in the presence of potassium iodide. This makes a
linear triiodide ion complex with is soluble. The triiodide ion slips into the
coil of the starch causing an intense blue-black colour.

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Requirements
Materials required:
Test tubes
Bunsen Burner
Litmus paper
Various fruits and vegetable juices.

Chemical requirements:

pH indicator,

Iodine solution,
Fehling solution A and Fehling solution B

Ninhydrin solution

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Procedure
Preparation of fruit extract:
Most fruits naturally contain juices and this can be extracted by simply
crushing the fruits.
Preparation of Vegetable extract:
Take a small quantity of the vegetable in a food processer and add a
little water.
Experiment 1-Test for acidity.

5 ml each of various fruit and vegetable juices are taken in different

test tubes.

Litmus paper is dipped in each of the test tubes.

If Litmus paper turns red the fruit or vegetable is acidic in nature and if
it turns blue it is basic in nature.
Experiment 2-Test for proteins
2 ml of the extract is taken in a test tube.
2 ml of Ninhydrin is added to the test tube and the test tube is heated.
If the extract changes colour to blue or violet it indicates presence of
proteins.
Experiment 3-Test for carbohydrates
2 ml of juice is taken in test tube and 1ml of Fehling's solution A and 1
ml of Fehling's solution B is added.
Formation of a red precipitate indicates the presence of reducing sugars
like maltose, fructose, glucose and lactose.

20

Experiment 4-Test for starch

2 ml of juice was taken in a test tube and a few drops of Iodine solution
was added.
Colour change of the juice to Violet indicates the presence of starch.

21

Observation
Experminent
1. Test for

Sample

Observation

Inference

Pomegranate

Litmus paper turns

Acidic

Acidity

red
Lime

Litmus paper turns

Pour a few
drops of juice

Acidic

red
Tomato

Litmus paper turns

on litmus paper.

Acidic

red
Cabbage

No change

Neutral

Carrot

Litmus paper turns

Acidic

red
Beetroot

Litmus paper turns

Acidic

red
Spinach

Litmus paper turns

Acidic

red

2. Test for
Proteins

2 ml of the
extract is taken
in a test tube. 2
ml of Ninhydrin
is added to the

Cucumber

No change

Neutral

Pomegranate

No colour change

No proteins

Lime

No colour change

No proteins

Tomato

No colour change

No proteins

Cabbage

No colour change

No proteins

Carrot

No colour change

No proteins

Beetroot

No colour change

No proteins

Spinach

No colour change

No proteins

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test tube and the Cucumber

test tube is
heated.

No colour change

No proteins

A red precipitate is

Carbohydrates

formed

Present

A red precipitate is

Carbohydrates

formed

Present

A red precipitate is

Carbohydrates

formed

Present

A red precipitate is

Carbohydrates

formed

Present

A red precipitate is

Carbohydrates

formed

Present

A red precipitate is

Carbohydrates

formed

Present

A red precipitate is

Carbohydrates

formed

Present

A red precipitate is

Carbohydrates

formed

Present

No colour change

Starch Absent

2 ml of juice Lime
was taken in a
Tomato

No colour change

Starch Absent

Colour changes to

Starch Present

test tube and a

violet

3. Test for

Pomegranate

Carbohydrates
Lime
2 ml of juice is
taken in test Tomato
tube and 1ml of
Fehling's
solution A and 1 Cabbage
ml of Fehling's
solution B is
Carrot
added.
Beetroot

Spinach

Cucumber

4. Test for Starch

Pomegranate

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few drops of Cabbage

Iodine solution Carrot
was added.

No colour change

Beetroot

Colour changes to

Colour changes to

Starch Present

violet
Starch Present

violet
Spinach

Colour changes to

Starch Present

violet
Cucumber

No colour change

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Starch Absent

Results and Discussions

S. No.

Name of juice

Acidic

Starch

Proteins

Carbohydrates

character
1

Pomegranate

Acid

Negative

Negative

Positive

Lime

Acid

Negative

Negative

Positive

Tomato

Acid

Positive

Negative

Positive

Cabbage

Neutral

Negative

Negative

Positive

Carrot

Acid

Positive

Negative

Positive

Beetroot

Acid

Positive

Negative

Positive

Spinach

Acid

Positive

Negative

Positive

Cucumber

Neutral

Negative

Negative

Positive

Positive indicates a positive result i.e. that the particular substance is present
in the given sample.
Negative indicates a negative result i.e. that the particular substance is not
present in the given sample.

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Conclusion
All fruits and vegetables contain carbohydrates.
Fruits do not contain any trace of proteins as all the tests reported
negative. But as most fruits and vegetables do contain proteins, this
result is a major drawback to the experiment.
Starch is present in vegetables but not in fruits.
Most fruits and vegetables are acidic.

From Above We Conclude That For A Sufficient Diet We Must Drink Fruit
Juice As Well As Vegetable Juice In Our Daily Diet.

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Precautions, Scope and Limitations

Scope: The project will allow us to identify the nutrients that are contained in
the fruits and vegetables.
Precautions:
All fruits and vegetable extracts must be freshly prepared.
The extract must not be exposed to the atmosphere for a long period of
time otherwise it might get oxidized. For example Apple extract gets
oxidized due to its iron content.
Limitations:
Even though we can identify the nutrients present in the fruits and
vegetables we are unable to find the quantity which is present.
These tests can only be performed on the fruit or vegetable extract
(juice) which means the tests might not be so reliable.
These fruit and vegetable extracts might get oxidized on exposure to
the atmosphere.
Extract cannot be prepared from all fruits and vegetables.
All the tests for Proteins turned negative, but in reality all fruits and
vegetables contain proteins. This was a major drawback to the
experiment.

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Bibliography
Comprehensive chemistry practical guide.
www.Wikipedia.com
www.Scribd.com
www.naturalnews.com
Britannica Encyclopaedia
Microsoft Encarta
www.food.com
www.whfoods.com
www.nutritiondata.com
www.health.com

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