Sciencemadness Discussion Board

Caffeine extraction.

Ashot - 18-7-2016 at 12:37

I've just uploaded my new video.
please check this out
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tiGTvkd1r-g



In this video, I am extracting the caffeine from two sources, from tea and from coffee.
In this experiment, my goal is to determine which substance contains more caffeine.
Also, it is a good demonstration of a classic method of caffeine extraction using the organic solvent.
However, these days this method is not in use anymore for the manufacturing processes due to its health hazards, instead process known as supercritical carbon dioxide extraction used for the big scale extraction. This process is very safe and relatively efficient.

In my case, Ethyl acetate could’ve been used instead of dichloromethane as it carries a very insignificant amount of health related risks however, it is much more flammable than DCM.
The purpose of this video is for comparison only and not for consumption, for this reason, I decided to use DCM, it is safer in terms of flammability and easier to work with due to its low boiling point.

Please let me know what do you think, every opinion is of a big value for me.

Jstuyfzand - 18-7-2016 at 13:40

Who makes a cup of tea with 5 bags? :)

Anyway, what editing software do you use? You might want to render the videos in Full-HD (1080p), it doesnt matter if your camera
is full-hd but the text will appear alot sharper.

Ashot - 18-7-2016 at 13:50

1 cup of coffee is around 3 grams (2 teaspoons) and 1 bag of tea contains 2.8grams, which is quite similar. If tea is strong enough the amount of caffeine would be very close to the equivalent.

I am using adobe premiere pro cc.
I am very new to video editing and learning as I am filming the videos.
If you willing to provide somewhat easy to follow instructions I will try to change it to full HD.

subsecret - 18-7-2016 at 20:19

Quote: Originally posted by Ashot  
1 cup of coffee is around 3 grams (2 teaspoons)...


That sounds like a really, really small cup. And it's basically a meaningless comparison if the amounts of tea/coffee aren't equal, or if you aren't calculating a percentage or a mg/g for caffeine content.

Ashot - 19-7-2016 at 06:34

I wouldn't call it a small cup, instant coffee has a very low density, even 3 grams sounds like a small amount but it occupies the volume of 10cm3
For the experiment, I've used arabica instant coffee and if you dissolve 3 grams of this coffee in 200ml of water, it will be so strong you could hardly drink it without milk and sugar.

I am calculating the amount of caffeine from the equivalent amount of tea and coffee by mass, which is mg/g of caffeine.
To be honest with you I have never met a person who puts more than 3 teaspoons of coffee in the drink.




Ashot - 19-7-2016 at 07:11

I just read the instructions from the coffee jar and they recommend 1teaspoon per cup.