MOISTURE DETERMINATION

Questions:

1. What is the significance of moisture content determination?

- The moisture content determination role is ensuring and
maintaining quality for pharmaceuticals, chemicals, and food. It
Is a critical indicator of quality, safety, and shelf life. Moisture
content is one of the most commonly measured properties of food
materials where important to the processor and the consumer.
2. What are the USP and NF official methods of moisture
determination? Give the specific uses, advantages and
disadvantages.
 Gravimetric method - the process by which the drug is dried at (105%) 105 degree celcius until a
constant weight, so it is considered a destructive method for plant material.
 Titrimetry - is a moisture determination method specific for water and is suitable for samples with
highh moisture contents and also for those with water contents in the ppm range.

 Advantage (Gravimetric method)

- It is accurate when using a modern analytical balance
 Disadvantage (Gravimetric method)
- It require meticulous time-consuming
 Advantage (Titrimetry)
- Specificity of water determination
 Disadvantage (Titrimetry)
- It is a destructive technique

3. Why shouldn’t speed mills be used in preaparing the sample for moisture
determinstion?
- It shouldn’t speed mills be used in preparing the sample for moisture determination to
prevent contamination since moisturer from air could be absorbed by the sample.

4. What are the advantages and disadvantages of the gravimetric method and the
instrumental method of determining the moisture content of a plant material?
 Advantages
- Possible sources of error are readily checked since filtrates can be tested for completeness for
precipitation, and precipitates may be examined for the presence of impurities.
- Gravimetric analysis was used to determined the atomic masses of many elements to six-figure
accuracy.

 Disadvantages
- Gravimetric analysis is based on the measurement of mass
- The chemist often prefers modern instrumental methods when they can used

5. Give an example of a pharmaceutical procedure that needs moisture determination

 Thermogravimetric
- It is a complete, accurate, and responsive method of moisture determination based on the loss-on-drying
principle.