Beverage

1. Beverages are an integral part of human diet, starting from new born.
2. Beverages can be defined as any fluid which is consumed by drinking.
3. It consists of diverse group of food products, usually liquids that include the most essential
drink water to wide range of commercially available fluids like fruit beverage, synthetic
drinks, alcoholic beverage, milk, dairy beverages, tea, coffee, chocolate drinks etc.
4. Despite differences in their properties one common feature that exists in all beverages is their
ability to act as thirst quencher.
5. In simple words beverages can be defined as liquid which is essentially designed or
developed for human consumption.
6. The beverages are rarely consumed for its food value but it is vital for life. Although their
prime role is to fulfill the human need but these are part of our culture.

Alcohol (Alcoholic Beverage

There are several subcategories to beer, wine, and liquor, and these subcategories help
to define and regulate the production of specific alcoholic beverages. Understanding
the specifics of alcohol types and content helps manufacturers, retail salespeople,
bartenders, and consumers determine how much alcohol is in one serving, and
therefore how much is consumed.
Definition
1. Alcohol is mobile, volatile fluid obtained by fermenting a liquid containing
sugar.
2. A potable (meaning drinkable) liquid containing ethyl alcohol or ethanol of
0.5 percent or more by volume is termed as ‘alcoholic Beverage’.
3. Pure alcohol is colourless, clear liquid with a burning taste. It derives its
colour from the wood of the cask in which it is matured, and / or from the
caramel which May be added during its maturation or bottling.
How is Potable Alcohol (Alcoholic Beverage) obtained

All alcoholic beverages involve the action of fungi. All alcohol or alcoholic beverages are
obtained by a processalcohol in a drink varies from 0.5 – 9.5%, depending on the method by
which the alcohol is obtained.

Fermentation is the process in which the yeast acts on sugar and converts it to ethanol and
gives off carbon dioxide. The fermented liquid has 3-14% alcohol and it can be concentrated
up to 95% by a series of distillations

Distillation is the process of separating elements in a liquid by vaporization and condensation.

In the distillation process, the alcohol which is present in the fermented liquid (alcoholic wash)
is separated from water.

WINE
 1. Wine is a undistilled alcoholic beverage produced by the nor mal alcoholic fermentation
of the juice of sound, ripe grapes (including restored or unrestored pure condensed grape
must), with or without additives and with or without added grape brandy or alcohol
2. alcoholic content derived by fermentation, not less than 7.0 and not more than 15.5% by
volume.
3. Vintage wine: It shall be a wine made from grapes that were all or mostly grown in a
particular year, and labelled as such. A season's yield of wine from a vineyard is a vintage
wine.
4. Generic wine: It shall be wine made from blend of several varieties of grapes with no one
grape variety predominating; a wine that does not carry the name of any specific grape.
5. Red wine: It shall be made from the coloured grape varieties and/or light red to a deep dark
red. The fermentation is carried out along with skin in production of red wine to allow the
extraction of colour and tannins which contribute to the flavour.
6. White wine: fermentation of white juice extracted after removal of skin of either white or
red grapes before fermentation.
7. Rose wine: It shall have pink colour produced during fermentation with less contact time
with skin. It may also be obtained from the blending of white wine and red wine
8. Dry wine: It is the wine which contains 0.4 % to 0.9 % sugar.
9. Medium- 0.9 to 1.2 % sugar--4.5 % sugar.
10. Sweet wine: It is the wine which contains more than 4.5 % sugar

Sparkling Wine It is a wine made effervescent with carbon dioxide with minimum 3.5 bars
pressure at 20 0 C resulting solely from the secondary fermentation of the wine within a
closed container, tank or bottle. Champagne: It is a type of sparkling light wine made in
the Champagne district of France

Fortified wine: Fortified wines are the wines to which additional alcohol is added in the form
of brandy or neutral spirit either prior to completion of fermentation or after it, provided at
least 4% of actual alcohol content of the products must come from the fermentation.

Different types of fortified wines are Port, Sherry, Madeira, Marsala, and Vermouth.

Port: It is a fortified wine, could be red or white, fortification is done before completion of
fermentation and is aged. Sherry: It is a fortified wine and has characteristics flavour and
bouquet of baking. It contains 18 to 21% alcohol.

BEER

Beer: It is an un-distilled alcoholic beverage made from any malted grain, but commonly
from barley malt, with hops or products obtained from hops to impart a bitter flavor and
sometimes added with adjuncts like wheat, maize, corn rice and sugar.

Depending upon the ethyl alcohol content specified Beer can be classified under following
four types:
 1. Light – (0.5 to 4%)
2. Standard – (4.1 to 5%)
3. Strong – (5.1 to 6%)
4. Super strong – (6.1% to 8%)

Beer is classified on the basis of type of fermentation – Top or Bottom. Top fermented beers
are known as Ales while bottom fermented beers are known as Lagers.

Lager: Lager beers are prepared by using bottom fermenting yeast and aged; may have low
or high alcohol content and can be found in a wide variety of colours from light to dark. It is
stored for a specified period before being bottled or canned.

Ale Beer: Prepared by using top fermenting yeast and usually lighter in colour, prepared
from pale malt and has a medium bodied flavour.

Stouts and porters: These are dark beers made using roasted malts or roast barley, and
typically brewed with slow fermenting yeast

Four different raw materials are required for beer brewing:

• Water
• Malt
• Hops
• Yeast
Malt---Malt is being produced from grain, mostly barley. The alcoholic content of beer only
depends on the blend ratio of malt and water not on the color - light or dark - of the beer.

Brewing water--For the beer production it is of main importance that the brewing water is
clean and free of impurities.

Hops --Besides the convenient flavor, the hops performs further important tasks during beer
production.Due to its natural content of essential oils (as to be found in remedy herbs like
camomile and eucalyptus), the hops protects the beer against deterioration. Basically, one
differentiates between aroma hops and bitter hops, the latter mainly being used due to its
considerably lower price even though aroma hops is of higher quality

Yeast---In the course of fermentation, the purpose of the yeast is to convert the malt sugar
which has dissolved during mixing of malt and water in the brew house into alcohol and
CO2

Cider – An alcoholic beverage made from fermented juice of cider apples. 25% of pear juice
can be used while manufacturing cider. Cider is popular in countries like United Kingdom,
New Zealand, and Australia. In USA, non – alcoholic cider is termed as ‘sweet cider’ and
alcoholic cider is termed as ‘hard cider’.
Perry – An alcoholic beverage made from fermented juice of pears similar to the way cider is
made from apples. It has been common for centuries in England, particularly in the Three
Counties (Gloucestershire, Herefordshire and Worcestershire. It is also made in parts of
South Wales and France. It is also manufactured in Commonwealth countries like Canada,
Australia and New Zealand.

Distilled Beverages

To obtain any alcoholic beverage fermentation is required and the strength of alcohol is
increased by application of distillation. These drinks are distilled from a base of a fermented
liquid and have a high percentage of alcohol compared to fermented drinks. Newly distilled
spirit (young spirit) is raw, sharp and harsh in taste. These drinks are aged in wooden barrels
to mellow and to make them flavourful.

Examples are as follows – Spirits – Whisky, rum, gin, vodka, tequila, and brandy

Other spirits – Arrack, Toddy, Feni, Slivovitz

Whisky
Whisky is the alcoholic beverage made from neutral grain spirit, or rectified grain spirit, or
neutral spirit or their mixture or is made by distilling the fermented extract of malted cereal
grains such as corn, rye, barley; or molasses. The ethyl alcohol content of Whisky shall be
in the range of 36 to 50 pe

Vodka is one of the world's most popular distilled beverages.

1. It is a clear liquid containing water and ethanol purified by distillation from a
fermented substance such as potatoes, grain or sugar beet molasses, and an
insignificant amount of other substances: impurities and possibly flavorings.
2. Except for various types of flavorings, vodka is a colorless liquid.
3. Vodka usually has an alcohol content of 35% to 50% by volume.
4. Vodka is a Russian delight.

Brandy is a spirit produced by distilling wine. Brandy generally contains 35–60% alcohol
by volume (70–120 US proof) and is typically taken as an after-dinner drink.
Some brandies are aged in wooden casks, some are colored with caramel coloring to imitate
the effect of aging, and some brandies are produced using a combination of both aging and
coloring.

Rum: It is an alcoholic distillate obtained from fermented juice of sugarcane, sugarcane

molasses, any other sugarcane product, sugar beet or sugar beet molasses and should not
contain any colouring matter other than caramel. It can also be prepared from neutral,
rectified, distilled spirit or a mixture of any combination thereof.

The ethyl alcohol content of Rum shall be in the range of 36 to 50 per cent by volume
GIN alcoholic beverage made from neutral spirit flavoured with volatile products of juniper
berries and other botanicals and aromatics. he ethyl alcohol content of gin shall be in the
range of 36 - 50 per cent

Tequila It is a distilled alcoholic beverage made from the blue agave juice or at least 51 per
cent blue agave juice. It is prepared primarily in the area surrounding the city of Tequila
(Mexico) in accordance with laws applicable thereto. It is prepared by double distillation and
some brands are distilled third time also

It shall contain 31-55 per cent alcohol by volume at 20 degree C. 2.6.3 It shall be aged in oak
barrels

Compound alcoholic beverages

Compound alcoholic beverages are defined as a mixed beverage, which is blended or

composed carefully by extracting flavour, colour and sweetness from various fruits, herbs,
plants, and nuts. Such beverages include: Liqueurs, Cocktails.

Liqueur – A liqueur is alcoholic beverage, which has a base of spirit (grain spirit, neutral
spirit) which is flavoured with fruits, herbs, spices, flowers, seeds, plants and are sweetened
and can be coloured or colourless. They are also termed as Digestif / Digestive. Liqueurs are
not usually aged for long periods, but may have resting periods during their production to
allow flavours to blend. Liqueurs can be further categorised as – fruit liqueur, cream liqueur,
coffee liqueur, chocolate liqueur, schnapps, herbal liqueur, depending upon the flavouring
agents used.

Cocktails - A cocktail is an alcoholic mixed drink, which is either a combination of spirits, or

one or more spirits mixed with other ingredients such as fruit juice, flavoured syrup, or
cream. There are various types of cocktails, based on the number and kind of ingredients
added. Examples of Classic Cocktails – Martini, Margarita, Mojito, Whiskey Sour

Country liquor
Country liquor is a distilled alcoholic beverage made from locally available cheap raw
material such as sugar- cane, rice, palm, coconut and cheap grains, with an alcohol content
between 25% and 45%. Common varieties of country liquor are arrack (from paddy or
wheat), desi sharab and tari. Illicit liquor is mostly produced clandestinely in small
production units with raw materials similar to that used for country liquor. With no legal
quality control checks on them, alcohol concentration of illicit liquor varies (up to 56%).

Adulteration is quite frequent, industrial methylated spirit being a common adulterant, which
occasionally causes incidents like mass poisoning with consumers losing their lives or
suffering irreversible damage to the eyes. Cheaper than licensed country liquor, illicit liquor
is popular among the poorer sections of the population. In many parts of India, illicit
production of liquor and its marketing is a cottage industry with each village having one or
two units operating illegally.

Plain Country Spirit: It is the alcoholic distillate obtained from fermented mash of cereals,
potato, cassava, fruits, molasses, jaggery, juice or sap of coconut, and palm trees, mahua
flowers or any other source of fermentable carbohydrate. The distillation shall be carried out
in such a way that the spirit has the flavour derived from the natural volatile components
already present in raw materials used or formed during fermentation

Arrack: It is a distilled alcoholic beverage typically produced from either the fermented sap
of coconut flowers, palm, sugarcane, grain or fruit. The clear distillate may be blended, aged
in wooden barrels, or repeatedly distilled and filtered depending upon the taste and colour
objectives of the manufacturer. This beverage contains about 36-50 percent of alcohol.

Fenny or Feni: It is a Goan spirit made from either coconut or the juice of the cashew apple.
The Fate Of Alcohol In The Body /Effects of Alcohol in a Nutshell/ Toxicology of
Alcohol
The pharmacodynamic properties of alcohol classify it as a central nervous system
depressant. Alcohol effects are dose-related. The more alcohol consumed the greater its
effects. Alcohol impairs both cognition (the process of knowing, thinking, learning and
judging) and psychomotor skills (voluntary movement). Alcohol first affects the most
recently developed parts of the brain, which are responsible for judgment, inhibition,
personality, intellectual and emotional states. As AC increases, the impairment of
psychomotor functions such as muscular coordination, balance, eye movement, etc. also
increases. As AC continues to increase, involuntary movement, such as respiration, is
affected, leading to possible coma or death.
All chemicals that enter the body are eventually broken down by chemicals within the body
and transformed into other chemicals that are easier to eliminate. This process of
transformation, called metabolism, consists of three basic steps: absorption, distribution,
and elimination.
Absorption
Absorption is the process of moving alcohol from outside the body into the bloodstream
where it can be distributed throughout the body. As a small, completely water-soluble
molecule, ethyl alcohol is readily absorbed into the mucous lining of the digestive tract.
When it comes into contact with the digestive tract, alcohol is absorbed via simple diffusion
into the mucous lining and then into the blood.
The amount absorbed at any given site depends upon the surface area, the thickness of the
lining and the blood supply.
Unlike most other ingested substances, alcohol is not digested and can be absorbed
unchanged directly through the stomach lining. Only about 20-25% of ingested alcohol is
absorbed in this manner because the stomach has a relatively small surface area and limited
blood supply.
The remaining 75-80% of the alcohol is rapidly and efficiently absorbed when it leaves the
stomach and enters the small intestine, which has a large surface area and rich blood supply.
Rate of Absorption and Time to Peak
Because alcohol is rapidly absorbed once it reaches the small intestine, anything that delays
the stomach from emptying its contents into the small intestine will slow the rate of alcohol
absorption. The most rapid absorption takes place when a 20% solution of alcohol is
consumed on an empty stomach.
Diluted drinks take somewhat longer to absorb.
 In concentrated drinks (greater than 40% by volume) alcohol acts as an irritant to the gastric
lining and will be retained in the stomach until it can be diluted.
Alcoholic beverages containing ingredients that require digestion, such as carbonated
beverages, may also slow absorption somewhat.
Absorption may also be affected by emotional state, shock and medications that impact
stomach function and the general condition of the gastrointestinal tract.

The most important factor affecting absorption is the presence of food in the stomach
concurrent with alcohol. Food requires digestion and any alcohol trapped in food particles
will take longer to be absorbed. The delay in absorption causes a lower peak alcohol
concentration that lasts longer compared to consumption on an empty stomach.
Absorption rates and times vary considerably between subjects—even within the same
subject at different times under similar conditions.
The rate of alcohol absorption is non-linear.An initial rapid rise in AC is followed by a
gradual tapering off until a peak concentration is attained. Of greatest forensic use is the time
it takes for alcohol to reach its peak concentration after consumption. Peak concentrations are
generally attained within 30 – 60 minutes of the cessation of drinking. Because of the initial
rapid rise of AC after drinking, most of the peak AC is reached within the first 30
minutes.This is true whether or not food is present, even though food can affect the
magnitude of the peak concentration. When alcohol is consumed successively over time, as
in a social drinking situation, peak concentrations are generally attained within 30
minutes of the last drink and may even be attained before the last drink is finished.
Many factors determine the rate at which alcohol is absorbed into the bloodstream, including
the total time taken to consume the drink, the alcohol content of the beverage, the amount
consumed, and the quantity and type of food present in the stomach at the time of drinking.
With so many variables, it is difficult to predict just how long the absorption process will
require. For example, beer is absorbed more slowly than an equivalent concentration of
alcohol in water, apparently because of the carbohydrates in beer. Also, alcohol consumed on
an empty stomach is absorbed faster than an equivalent amount of alcohol taken when there
is food in the stomach .The longer the total time required for complete absorption to occur,
the lower the peak alcohol concentration in the blood. Depending on a combination of
factors, maximum blood-alcohol concentration may not be reached until two or three hours
have elapsed from the time of consumption. However, under normal social drinking
conditions, it takes anywhere from 30 to 90 minutes from the time of the final drink until the
absorption process is completed.

Distributed

Once absorbed,
alcohol is transported by the blood and distributed throughout the body. (Figure 5.) As blood
flows to the body’s organs and tissues, alcohol diffuses across membranes into all areas that
contain water. Alcohol always moves by simple diffusion from a higher concentration to a
lower concentration
Because alcohol is completely soluble in water, the AC in the whole body is directly
proportional to total body water content.Water content varies from person to person. Obese
individuals have less water per pound of body weight than individuals of average build
because fat cells contain little water. Females tend to have a higher proportion of body fat
than males. About 68% of an average male’s body weight is due to body water, while the
percentage is 55% for average females. In general, the heavier a person is, the greater the
amount of alcohol that must be consumed to reach a specific alcohol concentration in the
body. The relative alcohol concentration in any fluid or tissue is also directly related to its
water content. The higher the water content, the higher the relative alcohol concentration.
The table of average distribution ratios below shows differences in alcohol concentration
relative to whole blood.
Distribution Ratios
1. Whole Blood 1.00
 2. Blood Plasma/Serum 1.14
3. Blood Clot 0.77
4. Urine 1.35 Brain 1.17
5. Saliva 1.12 Liver 0.91
6. Whole Body: men 0.68
7. Whole Body: women 0.55
8. Fat 0.019
Elimination
Alcohol is eliminated from the body through metabolism, excretion and evaporation.
Metabolism accounts for approximately 95% of alcohol elimination. Enzymes act on alcohol
molecules to change them into other compounds; these by-products are further metabolized.
Alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH) in the liver is the enzyme that is primarily responsible for
alcohol metabolism.ADH is also located in the stomach lining, causing a small portion of an
alcohol dose to be eliminated before it has a chance to be absorbed. Other enzyme systems
also act on alcohol, coming into play especially at higher alcohol concentrations.
Alcohol is also excreted unchanged through urine, tears, sweat, semen and saliva. Each drop
of urine that is produced and pooled in the bladder reflects the alcohol concentration of the
circulating blood at that time. Because alcohol has a high vapor pressure at body
temperatures, alcohol will evaporate from the blood into the lungs and be excreted in breath,
allowing it to be measured in a breath sample.
Rate of elimination.
The average rate of elimination (combining metabolism, excretion and evaporation) is
between 0.015 to 0.018% per hour. Expressed in terms of common alcohol measurement
units this is 0.015 - 0.018 g/100 mL or g/210 L per hour. Although the range of rates reported
in the scientific literature can be quite large, as a practical matter you can expect a range of
rates from 0.01 to 0.025% per hour in drinking drivers. Inexperienced drinkers tend to have a
lower average rate than moderate drinkers, while chronic drinkers and alcoholics will have
the highest average rates of elimination. Elimination rates do not vary significantly within the
same person at different times, although alcohol will be eliminated more rapidly during
periods of heavy drinking. At low AC’s (0.02 and below), the rate of elimination slows
considerably as the enzymes no longer have enough alcohol available to work at peak
efficiency.
Alcohol in the Circulatory System
The extent to which an individual may be under the influence of alcohol is usually
determined by measuring the quantity of alcohol present in the blood system. Normally, this
is accomplished in one of two ways:
(1) by direct chemical analysis of the blood for its alcohol content or
(2) by measurement of the alcohol content of the breath.
In either case, the significance and meaning of the results can better be understood when the
movement of alcohol through the circulatory system is studied.
Humans, like all vertebrates, have a closed circulatory system, which consists basically of a
heart and numerous arteries, capillaries, and veins.
1. An artery is a blood vessel carrying blood away from the heart, and a vein is a vessel
carrying blood back toward the heart.
2. Capillaries are tiny blood vessels that interconnect the arteries with the veins.
3. The exchange of materials between the blood and the other tissues takes place across
the thin walls of the capillaries.

Ingestion and Distribution

Let us now trace the movement of alcohol through the human circulatory system. After
alcohol is ingested, it moves down the esophagus into the stomach. About 20 percent of the
alcohol is absorbed through the stomach walls into the portal vein of the blood system. The
remaining alcohol passes into the blood through the walls of the small intestine. Once in the
blood, the alcohol is carried to the liver, where its destruction starts as the blood (carrying the
alcohol) moves up to the heart.
The blood enters the upper right chamber of the heart, called the right atrium (or auricle), and
is forced into the lower right chamber of the heart, known as the right ventricle. Having
returned to the heart from its circulation through the tissues, the blood at this time contains
very little oxygen and much carbon dioxide. Consequently, the blood must be pumped up to
the lungs, through the pulmonary artery, to be replenished with oxygen.
Aeration
The respiratory system bridges with the circulatory system in the lungs, so that oxygen can
enter the blood and carbon dioxide can leave it. the pulmonary artery branches into capillaries
lying close to tiny pear-shaped sacs called alveoli. There are about 250 million alveoli in the
lungs, all located at the ends of the bronchial tubes. The bronchial tubes connect to the
windpipe (trachea), which leads up to the mouth and nose . At the surface of the alveolar
sacs, blood flowing through the capillaries comes in contact with fresh oxygenated air in the
sacs.

A rapid exchange now proceeds to take place between the fresh air in the sacs and the spent
air in the blood. Oxygen passes through the walls of the alveoli into the blood while carbon
dioxide is discharged from the blood into the air. If, during this exchange, alcohol or any
other volatile substance is in the blood, it too will pass into the alveoli. During breathing, the
carbon dioxide and alcohol are expelled through the nose and mouth, and the alveoli sacs are
replenished with fresh oxygenated air breathed into the lungs, allowing the process to begin
all over again. The distribution of alcohol between the blood and alveolar air is similar to the
example of a gas dissolved in an enclosed beaker of water, as described on pp.

Henry’s law to explain how the alcohol divides itself between the air and blood.
Henry’s law may now be restated as follows:
When a volatile chemical (alcohol) is dissolved in a liquid (blood) and is brought to
equilibrium with air (alveolar breath), there is a fixed ratio between the concentration of
the volatile compound (alcohol) in air (alveolar breath) and its concentration in the liquid
(blood), and this ratio is constant for a given temperature.
the temperature at which the breath leaves the mouth is normally 34°C. At this temperature,
experimental evidence has shown that the ratio of alcohol in the blood to alcohol in alveoli air
is approximately 2,100 to 1. In other words, 1 milliliter of blood will containnearly the same
amount of alcohol as 2,100 milliliters of alveolar breath. Henry’s law thus becomes a basis
for relating breath to blood-alcohol concentration.

Recirculation and Absorption

After emerging from the lungs, the oxygenated blood is rushed back to the upper left chamber
of the heart (left atrium) by the pulmonary vein. When the left atrium contracts, it forces the
blood through a valve into the left ventricle, which is the lower left chamber of the heart. The
left ventricle then pumps the freshly oxygenated blood into the arteries, which carry the blood
to all parts of the body. Each of these arteries, in turn, branches into smaller arteries, which
eventually connect with the numerous tiny capillaries embedded in the tissues. Here the
alcohol moves out of the blood and into the tissues. The blood then runs from the capillaries
into tiny veins that fuse to form larger veins.
These veins eventually lead back to the heart to complete the circuit. During absorption, the
concentration of alcohol in the arterial blood is considerably higher than the concentration of
alcohol in the venous blood. One typical study revealed a subject’s arterial blood-alcohol
level to be 41 percent higher than the venous level thirty minutes after the last drink.2 This
difference is thought to exist because of the rapid diffusion of alcohol into the body tissues
from venous blood during the early phases of absorption. Because the administration of a
blood test requires drawing venous blood from the arm, this test is clearly to the advantage of
a subject who may still be in the absorption stage.
However, once absorption is complete, the alcohol becomes equally distributed throughout
the blood system. A breath test reflects the alcohol concentration in the pulmonary artery.
Breath-test results obtained during the absorption phase may be higher than results obtained
from a simultaneous direct analysis of venous blood. However, the former are more reflective
of the concentration of alcohol reaching the brain and therefore more accurately reflect the
effects of alcohol on the subject. Again, once absorption is complete, the difference between
a blood test and a breath test should be minimal.

Forensic examination of alcohol and alcoholic beverages

Forensic samples
In impaired driving cases, blood and urine samples are most often analyzed by gas
chromatography in a forensic or hospital toxicology laboratory. Forensic samples are whole
blood collected in vials containing an anti-coagulant and preservative.The analyst (chemist,
toxicologist, criminalist, medical technologist, etc.) will possess a scientific degree and may
be able to provide expert testimony to interpret the result. Law enforcement personnel, using
devices designed for providing a legally admissible alcohol result, only analyze breath
samples, and they may have little or no scientific background and be unable to provide
testimony beyond the operation and operating principles of the instrument used

Field sobriety: police officer who suspects that an individual is under the influence of
alcohol usually conducts a series of preliminary tests before ordering the suspect to submit to
an evidential breath or blood test.
These preliminary, or field sobriety, tests are normally performed to ascertain the degree of
the suspect’s physical impairment and whether an evidential test is justified.
Field sobriety tests usually consist of a series of psychophysical tests and a preliminary
breath test (if such devices are authorized and available for use).
This preliminary form of testing involves a series of behavioral tasks that a person suspected
of being intoxicated is requested to perform by a police officer on site. The National Highway
Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has developed a battery of three tasks, called the
Standardized Field Sobriety Test (SFST), to evaluate impairment as the basis of a probable
cause for arrest. These tests include .
Horizontal Gaze Nystagamus (HGN) – This test examines the involuntary jerking of the
eye as a person looks from side to side. Under normal conditions, this jerking occurs only
when someone looks far to the side but when intoxicated, the jerking movement occurs even
when a person looks only slightly to the side (less than 45°).
Intoxicated people often have difficulty in “tracking” movements smoothly as they try to
follow an object, such as a pen or flashlight, with their eyes. The NHTSA study showed that
people showing this response had an 88% chance of being at or above to 0.08% BAC level.
Walk and Turn (WAT) – This test is a “divided attention” test that is usually easily
performed by a sober person but is difficult for an impaired person. Typically, the person is
instructed to walk in a straight line in a “heel-to-toe” fashion for a specified number of steps,
turn and walk back to where they started – a series of simultaneous tasks that they must think
about (e.g., walking, balance, counting, etc.). An intoxicated person has difficulty doing
several actions at once, including listening to multi-step instructions and performing simple
tasks.
One Leg Stand (OLS) – In this test, the suspect is asked to balance on one foot while
counting until they are told to stop. Signs of impairment include swaying, putting the foot
down, and using arms to balance

Breath Testing:
Once a person is suspected of being intoxicated, a breath alcohol test is usually administered
by the officer, often called a breathalyzer or intoxilyzer test, to more accurately measure the
BAC level. Alcohol intoxication is legally defined by the blood alcohol concentration (BAC)
level. However, taking a blood sample in the field for later analysis in the laboratory is not
practical or efficient for detaining drivers suspected of driving while impaired (DWI) or
driving under the influence (DUI). Urine tests for alcohol proved to be just as impractical in
the field as blood sampling. What was needed was a way to measure something related to
BAC without invading a suspect's body.
History
In the 1940s, breath alcohol testing devices were first developed for use by police. In 1954,
Dr. Robert Borkenstein of the Indiana State Police invented the Breathalyzer, one type of
breath alcohol testing device used by law enforcement agencies today.
Principle of Testing
Alcohol in the blood circulates rapidly throughout the body, including to the lungs. The lungs
contain millions of tiny sacs, called alveoli, which provide an efficient way to transfer gases
between the air and the circulating blood. In the lungs, oxygen from the air becomes
dissolved in the blood and carbon dioxide dissolved in the blood escapes into the air. This
exchange process is described by something called Henry’s Law which states that when a
solution containing a dissolved volatile compound, such as O2, CO2 or even CH3CH2OH
(alcohol), is brought into contact with a gas (the air), a fixed equilibrium is established
between the amount of the volatile compound in the air and the amount dissolved in the
liquid. In other words, at equilibrium, while some of the compound (i.e., ethanol) escapes
into the air, some of it is also redissolves in the liquid (i.e., blood).
So, at fixed temperature and pressure, once equilibrium is reached, there is a fixed ratio of
volatile compound in the air compared to that in the liquid. In the case of alcohol and blood,
this ratio is just about 2,100 to 1. This means that, at the temperature of the breath leaving a
person (body temperature) and normal atmospheric pressure, there is always the same amount
of alcohol in 1 mL of blood as there is in 2,100 mL of expired air. So, if we can determine the
concentration of alcohol in a person’s breath, we can directly relate this to the amount of
alcohol in their blood using the 2,100:1 ratio
Types of Devices: Breathalyzer
There are three major types of breath alcohol testing devices, and they're based on different
principles:
1. Breathalyzer - Uses a chemical reaction involving alcohol that produces a color
change
2. Intoxilyzer - Detects alcohol by infrared (IR) spectroscopy
3. Alcosensor III or IV - Detects a chemical reaction of alcohol in a fuel cell
Regardless of the type, each device has a mouthpiece, a tube through which the suspect blows
air, and a sample chamber where the air goes. The rest of the device varies with the type.
Breathalyzer
The Breathalyzer device contains:
1. A system to sample the breath of the suspect
2. Two glass vials containing the chemical reaction mixture
3. A system of photocells connected to a meter to measure the color change associated
with the chemical reaction
To measure alcohol, a suspect breathes into the device. The breath sample is bubbled in one
vial through a mixture of sulfuric acid, potassium dichromate, silver nitrate and water. The
principle of the measurement is based on the following chemical reaction:
In this reaction:
1. The sulfuric acid removes the alcohol from the air into a liquid solution.
2. The alcohol reacts with potassium dichromate to produce: chromium sulfate
potassium sulfate acetic acid water
3. The silver nitrate is a catalyst, a substance that makes a reaction go faster without
participating in it. The sulfuric acid, in addition to removing the alcohol from the air,
also might provide the acidic condition needed for this reaction.
 4. During this reaction, the reddish-orange dichromate ion changes color to the green
chromium ion when it reacts with the alcohol; the degree of the color change is
directly related to the level of alcohol in the expelled air.

5. To determine the amount of alcohol in that air, the reacted mixture is compared to a
vial of unreacted mixture in the photocell system

6. A photocell compares the difference in colors between the reacted mixture in the test
chamber and a reference chamber containing unreacted mixture.

7. The difference in colors produces an electrical current, which can be converted into a
quantitative value for the BAC. Read on to understand how the chemical reaction
produces the color change.

This is the balanced equation to show how ethanol is oxidized to acetic acidThe Chemistry of
Alcohol

Infrared Light Absorption

Intoxilyzer
This device uses infrared (IR) spectroscopy, which identifies molecules based on the way
they absorb IR light.
Principle
Molecules are constantly vibrating, and these vibrations change when the molecules absorb
IR light. The changes in vibration include the bending and stretching of various bonds. Each
type of bond within a molecule absorbs IR at different wavelengths. So, to identify ethanol in
a sample, you have to look at the wavelengths of the bonds in ethanol (C-O, O-H, C-H, C-C)
and measure the absorption of IR light. The absorbed wavelengths help to identify the
substance as ethanol, and the amount of IR absorption tells you how much ethanol is there.
 1. A lamp generates a broadband (multiple-wavelength) IR beam.
2. The broadband IR beam passes through the sample chamber and is focused by a lens
onto a spinning filter wheel.
3. The filter wheel contains narrow band filters specific for the wavelengths of the bonds
in ethanol. The light passing through each filter is detected by the photocell, where it
is converted to an electrical pulse.
4. The electrical pulse is relayed to the microprocessor, which interprets the pulses and
calculates the BAC based on the absorption of infrared light.

The Analysis of Blood for Alcohol

Laboratory (Confirmatory) Testing:
(a)Iodoform Test:
1. Take about 1 ml or appropriate of sample (distilled or as
2. such depending upon the nature of sample and concentration of ethanol) and add
about 1 ml of 5% sodium hydroxide solution and then add iodine solution (20 gm
Potassium iodide + 10 gm Iodine in 100 ml water) drop-wise with shaking until the
liquid becomes persistent dark brown in colour) Keep it for 2-3 minutes.
3. If the iodine colour disappears add more drops of iodine solution until persistent
brown colour of iodine.
4. Add few drops of dilute sodium hydroxide solution to remove extra iodine. Add
equal volume of water, keep it for ten minutes.
5. Yellow crystalline precipitate indicates the positive test for the presence of ethanol.

(b) Dichromate Test :

6. To about 1 ml or appropriate amount of sample (distilled or as such depending upon

the nature of samples and concentration of ethanol) is added about 0.2 ml of 2%
potassium dichromate solution followed by about 1 ml of concentration sulphuric
acid.
7. The yellow colour of the dichromate changes to green or blue indicates the presence
of ethanol.

The definitive test, however, is usually the analysis of the BAC using a gas chromatograph-
mass spectrometer tandem. In this method, the amount of alcohol is quantitatively determined
by the GC (Figure 13.5.20) while the unambiguous identification of ethanol in the sample is
carried out in the mass spectrometer. There are very few interferences with this method and it
provides the most reliable and accurate BAC level determinations possible
Finally, sometimes a spectrophotometric method may be useful in determining the BAC
level, especially as a second confirmatory test. In this method, the ethanol is first
enzymatically converted into acetaldehyde, generating a chemical called NAD (nicotinamide
adenine dinucleotide – a co-enzyme found in all living cells). The acetaldehyde is trapped as
a stable compound using hydrazine (N2H4) and the amount of NAD formed is measured at
340 nm (ultraviolet region). The more NAD present, the higher the alcohol concentration in
the sample.