ESR spectrometer as a possible tool for rapid analysis of cane sugar purity

A method for quantitative/qualitative determination of cane sugar purity by ESR is devised. Refined sugar, plantation white sugar, soft brown sugar and raw sugar are used as samples in this work. The sucrose radical is produced by pulverization of sugar and it increases as the particle size decreases. Based on pulverization-induced sucrose radical, ESR study demonstrates the effects of sugar purity on characteristic of ESR spectrum. The relationship between the sucrose contents and peak area under the ESR spectrum is manifested. It is found that the peak area or sucrose radical concentration increases linearly with the increase of sucrose content. Using the linear regression method, the sucrose amount can be revealed. This approach is a promising fast and accurate method for sugar purity analysis.