African Journal of
Food Science

  • Abbreviation: Afr. J. Food Sci.
  • Language: English
  • ISSN: 1996-0794
  • DOI: 10.5897/AJFS
  • Start Year: 2007
  • Published Articles: 978

Full Length Research Paper

Quantification of ethanol and identification of other chemical constituents in homemade morula beer using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS)

Mmaabo Tsenang
  • Mmaabo Tsenang
  • Botswana International University of Science and Technology Department of Chemical and Forensic Sciences, BIUST, Palapye, Botswana.
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Tshepo Pheko-Ofitlhile
  • Tshepo Pheko-Ofitlhile
  • Botswana International University of Science and Technology Department of Chemical and Forensic Sciences, BIUST, Palapye, Botswana.
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Janes Mokgadi
  • Janes Mokgadi
  • Chemical, Biological, Nuclear and Radiological Weapon Management Authority, Ministry of Defense, Justice and Security, Private Bag 0384, Gaborone, Botswana.
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Wellington Masamba
  • Wellington Masamba
  • Botswana International University of Science and Technology Department of Chemical and Forensic Sciences, BIUST, Palapye, Botswana.
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Gothatamang Norma Phokedi
  • Gothatamang Norma Phokedi
  • Botswana International University of Science and Technology Department of Chemical and Forensic Sciences, BIUST, Palapye, Botswana.
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  •  Received: 07 February 2023
  •  Accepted: 31 May 2023
  •  Published: 31 July 2023

Abstract

Morula (Sclerocarya birrea) beer is a seasonal homemade alcoholic beverage made from morula fruits pulp. Unlike the commercial morula alcoholic beverage, the alcohol content of homemade morula beer is not known. The major challenges with homemade alcoholic beverages arise from batch-to-batch differences in product quality and safety due to the variability of raw materials and lack of quality control. Consequently, the alcohol content of alcoholic beverages made by the same individual may differ. In this study, a validated liquid-liquid extraction gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) method is used for the quantification of ethanol and identification of volatiles in homemade morula alcoholic beverage. The analysed samples contained ethanol with concentrations ranging from 0.5 to 5.8% v/v depending on the number of days the sample was fermented. Other volatile compounds that were identified were acetic acid, propanol, propanal, butanal, 3-methyl-1-butanol; 2-methyl-1-butanol, butanoic acid, iso-amyl acetate, butanoic acid ethyl ester, benzyl alcohol, phenyl ethyl alcohol, lactic acid, humulene, decanoic acid ethyl ester and 2-methyl-1-hexadecanoic acid ethyl ester. The volatile compounds were found to decrease over time. These results provides a validated method for the characterisation of homemade alcoholic beverages and information on the quality of morula beer.

 

Key words: Morula beer, home-made alcoholic beverage, gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS), standardisation.

Copyright © 2024 Author(s) retain the copyright of this article.

This article is published under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License 4.0

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