Spectrophotometric method for the determination of saccharin in food and pharmaceutical products

A simple extractive spectrophotometric determination of saccharin is described. The method is based on bromination of saccharin to form N-bromo derivative, which on reaction with potassium iodide liberates iodine, imparting yellow colour to the solution. On addition of surfactant cetyl trimethyl ammonium bromide, the intensity of yellow colour increases; it is then extracted in isoamyl alcohol. The absorption maximum was observed at 400 nm, and Beer's law was found to obey over the range 1.5-15 µg of saccharin per 50 ml final solution (0.03-0.3 ppm). The molar absorptivity and Sandell's sensitivity were found to be 4.76 × 10 5 l mol -1 cm -1 and 3.8 × 10 -4 µg cm -2 respectively. The method is sensitive, reproducible and free from interferences of common ions and ingredients commonly present in food products and has been successfully applied in the determination of saccharin in food and pharmaceutical products.