Determination of the

oxalate ions in guava

fruit
at
different
stages of its ripening.

uava is a common sweet fruit found in India and many other places around the
world.Guavas
are plants in the Myrtle family (Myrtaceae) genus Psidium (meaning "pomegranate" in
Latin), which contains about 100 species of tropical shrub. On ripening it turns yellow in
color. Rich in vitamin C, this fruit is a rich source of oxalate ions whose content varies
during the different stages of ripening.
Guavas have a pronounced and typical fragrance, similar to lemon rind but less in strength.

Guava is mainly a winter fruit. It has many medicinal properties and cultivated in
almost all parts of India. Approximately composition of this fruit is
Constituent
Water
Proteins
Fats
Calcium
Phosphorus
Vitamin C
Organic Matter

% Amount
76.10
1.50
0.20
0.01
0.04
0.30
14.50

t is a carboxylic acid, primarily found in plants and

animals. It is not an essential molecule and is excreted
from our body, unchanged. Our body either produces
oxalate on its own or converts other molecules like
Vitamin C to oxalate. External sources like food also contribute
to the accumulation of oxalate in our body. The oxalate present
in the body is excreted in the form of urine as waste. Too much
of oxalate in our urine results in a medical condition called
hyperoxaluria, commonly referred to as kidney stones. Diet is
looked upon as a preventive measure in addition to medication to
treat kidney stones.

Oxalate content of the fruit is

made to go into solution by boiling its pulp with

distilled water and its amount in the solution is
determined by redox titration using potassium
permanganate solution.
5CO +16H + 2MnO---2Mn+ 8HO + 10CO
Pink
Colourless

0.05N KMnO solution, dil. HSO,

distilled water, fully riped, semi-riped and raw

guava.
(i) Take one fully riped guava and peel

off its skin. Weigh25 g of this.

(ii) Make very small pieces of this with the help of a knife and crush these in clean
pestle and mortar.
(iii) Transfer the pulp so obtained into a 250mL beaker. Wash the pestle and mortar
well with about 100mL of distilled water and transfer the washings also into the
beaker.
(iv) Boil the contents of the beaker for about 10 minutes. Cool and filter through a
funnel. Collect the filtrate in a 250mL measuring flask. Make the volume up to the
mark i.e. 250mL by adding distilled water. Label the flask as riped guava solution.
(v) Similarly, prepare 250mL solution of 25g semi-riped and raw guava.
(vi) Now, pipette out 25mL of solution from one of the flasks into a conical flask. Add
20mL of dilute sulphuric acid to it. Warm the flask to about 60C and titrate it with
0.05 N KMnO solution until colour of the solution just changes to permanent pink.
Repeat the experiment with same solution till three concurrent readings are
obtained.
(vii) Similarly, find out the amount of 0.05 N Potassium permanganate solution
required for titration in the other two guava solutions.

(viii) Compare the three titre values i.e. volume of KMnO consumed for 25ml of
three guava solution which consumes maximum volume of the permanganate
solution contains maximum oxalate ions.

Observation:
Normality of the KMnO

solution = 0.05

End Point = Colourless to pink

Volume of guava solution taken each time for
titration = 25mL

It is concluded from the above

experiment that the amount of
oxalate ions in guava at different
stages of ripening decreases.

Precautions:
(i) Do not mix the three fruits or their solutions.

(ii) Boil the crushed fruit with equal amount of

water and for the same length of time in all the
three cases.
(iii) Wash the pestle and mortar well before
starting with other guavas.
(iv) Weighing should be done accurately.

Chemistry NCERT Book (Part-I & Part-II)

Chemistry Lab Manual
Comprehensive Chemistry
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INDIAN INSTITUTEOF APPLIEDSCIENCE:
http://www.ias.ac.in/currsci/aug102001 /248.pdf