SAMPLING AND ANALYSIS OF LECITHIN

AOCS Official Method Ja 9-87

Revised 2001

Gardner Color
DEFINITION
This method determines lecithin color by comparison of an undiluted sample to standards of a speci-
fied color.
SCOPE
Applicable to all nongranular lecithin products that can be fluidized under the conditions of the test.

APPARATUS (b) Surrounding field—Should not differ significantly

1. Glass standards—eighteen, numbered separately, hav- in brightness from the samples and standards, and
ing the transmittance characteristics given in Table 1. should be essentially achromatic.
Glass standards may be obtained from Byk Gardner, (c) Field of view — Two standards and the sample
Inc., Columbia, MD, 21045 USA; Tintometer Ltd., should subtend a visual angle of about 2°. Two stan-
Salisbury, UK. dards and a sample should always be in the field of
view.
(d) Separation of standard and sample—There should be
Table 1 a perceptible separation between sample and stan-
Chromaticity coordinates of reference standards. dard, but this should be as small as mechanically pos-
Chromaticity coordinatesa sible.
Another type of apparatus may be used, if it can be
Standard number X Y
demonstrated to give the same results.
1 .3177 .3303
2 .3233 .3352 PROCEDURE
3 .3329 .3452 1. Plastic and ve ry high-viscosity lecithins should be
4 .3437 .3644 heated gently to 60°C.
5 .3558 .3840 Note—Heat darkens all lecithins. Prolonged heat-
6 .3767 .4061 ing at temperatures near 60°C should be avoided. Do
7 .4044 .4352 not heat the sample above 60°C.
8 .4207 .4498 2. Transfer the sample to a color tube until it is filled to
9 .4343 .4640 about 2.5 cm from the top. Avoid entrapment of air
10 .4503 .4760 bubbles by holding the tube at a slight angle, thereby
11 .4842 .4818 allowing the sample to flow gently down the side. If
12 .5077 .4638 bubbles are present, allow them to rise to the surface,
13 .5392 .4458 or remove by centrifugation before testing.
14 .5646 .4270 3. The color of the sample is reported as the number of
15 .5857 .4089 the standard most closely matching the sample. If the
16 .6047 .3921 sample falls between two standards, it will be reported
17 .6290 .3701 as “+” or “−” depending on whether it is darker (+) or
18 .6477 .3521 lighter (−) than the standard it most closely approach-
aSee
es. Thus, between colors 5 and 6, the steps will be 5,
Notes, 1. 5+, 6−, and 6.

NUMBERED NOTES
2. Clear glass tubes—10.65 ± 0.025 mm i.d., and about
114 mm outside length. Viscosity tubes, as described
in AOCS Official Method Tq 1a-64, are satisfactory.
Kimble EXAX test tubes, #46463-1075, may also be
used.
3. Suitable apparatus for comparing sample and standards—
the apparatus may be of any design, but for the highest
precision, should have the following characteristics:
(a) Illumination—CIE Illuminant C.
1. The values of the ch ro m aticity coordinates may be
obtained by spectro p h o t o m e t ric measurements, in
accordance with ASTM Designation E 308, or by visu-
al comparison with authentic standards. The tolerance
of individual standards shall not depart from the coor-
dinates given in Table 1 by more than 1⁄ 3 of the dis-
tance to the next color. In any one set, no two standards
shall be closer together than 2⁄ 3 of the nominal value of
the color difference between them.

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