 Important analysis, in that the concentration of

other nutrients is usually expressed on a dry

matter basis
 Dry matter analysis is the simplest analysis in the
lab
 Moisture content is simply the loss in weight
from evaporation of water

 Problems associated with DM estimation are
with 100C are loss of volatiles such as volatile
fatty acids and essential oils (menthol,
camphor)
 Air dry
 Refers to a sample that has been allowed to dry in
air, without aid of an oven or other drying device
 In air of less than 60% relative humidity most air-
dry samples will contain about 90% ± 2 % dry
matter
 This procedure is applicable for the
determination of dry matter on ground air-
dry or partially dried (≥85% dry matter)
forages with low volatile acid content
 This procedure may be used for
determination of DM on forage samples
 or for dry weight determinations of fiber
residues following fiber extraction
 Volatile acids and alcohols may be lost from
fermented samples
 Dry empty container in microwave for 3 min
at full power
 Place sample in oven and microwave at full
power for about 3 min. Remove sample and
mix.
 Repeat these steps three times for silage (35%
DM)
 Return sample to microwave at 50% power for
1 minute and re-weigh sample and container
 Repeat this step until no weight loss occurs
during drying interval
 Do not allow sample to char or burn
 Samples with higher moisture contents
require longer drying times.
 Increase the number of drying intervals, not
the time per drying interval or microwave
power level, as these may lead to charred or
burned samples
 Do not place any metal item or aluminum foil
into the oven. Sparking or crackling in the
oven indicates the presence of metal
 This procedure is applicable for determining
laboratory DM of ground, air-dry or partially
dried (90 to 95% DM) forage

 Samples must be ground with 1 mm screen

and be 90 to 95% DM
 Principle
 The moisture of sample is lost by
volatilization caused by heat.
 The amount of material left after the removal
of moisture is the DM
 Equipment
 A) Oven 105 C
 B) Covered aluminum dishes 50 mm diameter
with covers
 C) Desiccator
 Procedure
 Keep the weighing dish in drying oven for one
hour at 105C
 2. After an hour transfer the dish to
desiccator and after cooling weight it (A
grams).
 Handle dishes with metal tong
 Take about 5 grams of sample in the dried
dish and note the collective weight if dish and
 sample (B grams)
 4. Keep the dish in drying oven at 105°C for
one hour
 Then reduce the temperature to 65°C
 until it attains constant weight
 Cool down the dish in desiccator
 DM%= Weight of dried sample/Weight of
sample before drying x100

 Moisture % = 100 – Dry Matter %