SIS student finds best OJ for vitamin C
Grade 9 student explores the chemistry of orange juice in science fair project
Anna Clark used her love of chemistry to create her Grade 9 science fair project recently. She compared three brands of orange juice, conducted experiments and found which one contained the most vitamin C.
Ever wonder how much vitamin C is actually in orange juice?
Anna Clark did when she noticed how many people were drinking orange juice and popping vitamin C tablets during flu season.
So, the Grade 9 student from Summerside Intermediate School set out to make this the focus of her science fair project this month.
“It is a tedious process done through iodine titration, which can determine the amount of vitamin C in orange juice through colour change. This is done through combining different solutions and adding drops of iodine to the mixture,” explained.
“Once the dark colour, that is made from the iodine, stays for over 20 seconds after you’ve been swirling the flask, the titration is complete.”
Some quick mathematics answered Clark’s question. “Tropicana was accurate to its label and proved to have the most vitamin C of the three brands I tested.”
It took a lot of work, but it was fun, she concluded. Clark based her project on her who chose enjoyment of chemistry. “I was like, well, let me see if I can find something to do with chemistry, and I can tell everyone what orange juice they need.”
Multiple testing was done to make an average result for each sample and the results can be used in everyday life, Clark said.
“When you get the flu, you’ll know, well, if I take Minute Maid, maybe I’m not going to get over the flu quite as fast as if I take Tropicana, because (Tropicana) has more Vitamin C.”