Moisture and water content are among the most important parameters measured in food because the content of moisture is inversely related to the dry matter of a food. It also influences the stability and quality of food.
The guide offers tips to enhance the reliability and performance of measurements and ways to address common challenges, comparing Karl-Fischer titration, LOD and Moisture analyzer in detail because it has a direct influence on product shelf life.
There are four types of methods for analyzing moisture; thermogravimetric analysis (oven drying, halogen/IR drying, microwave drying, etc.), chemical analysis (Karl Fischer titration, calcium carbide testing), spectroscopic analysis (IR spectroscopy, microwave spectroscopy, H-NMR spectroscopy) and other types including gas chromatography, density determination and refractometry.
“It is useful for readers to have an overview of the different methods and to stay up to date on moisture analysis,” said Benjamin Harink, lab division marketing, Mettler-Toledo.
Time constraints
“We noticed the need for a detailed overview for quite some time. We have been receiving customer feedback that a comprehensive overview of methods and corresponding Mettler Toledo packages would be a valuable educational document.”
Harink added it was important to be up-to-date on industry developments because the main challenges food manufacturers face right now is time constraints.
“The standard reference method for moisture determination (Loss on Drying) takes a lot of time and there are good solutions, such as moisture analyzers that cut the time short.”
Enhanced metal detection
Mettler-Toledo has announced the launch of its Safeline Metal Detection software for its Profile metal detection systems this week.
As well as boosting detection sensitivity in wet and dry foods, the software simplifies product changeovers due to the Profile metal detector’s existing Product Clustering feature.
It allows manufacturers to examine a range of products on a single frequency setting, boosting production line flexibility while ensuring compliance with rigorous food safety standards.
The 'The Ultimate Moisture & Water Guide' can be downloaded for free from here.