Plant physico-chemistry
Physico-chemical analysis of plants
Plants and raw materials of plant origin have physico-chemical characteristics that determine their quality, effectiveness and compliance with regulatory standards and pharmacopoeias. Characterising these properties is essential to ensure consistent production, secure supply chains and enhance the quality of ingredients intended for the pharmaceutical, cosmetic and nutraceutical industries.
Physico-chemical analyses determine the intrinsic properties of plant materials, assessing their composition and behaviour when exposed to reagents or specific conditions.
Phytocontrol offers a range of physico-chemical analyses listed in the pharmacopoeias to assess the quality of your materials according to expected specifications (as per the pharmacopoeia or your own specifications):
- Water content (loss on drying or azeotropic distillation)
- Essential oil content
- Swelling index (on raw plant material)
- Total ash and/or acid-insoluble ash
- Determination of foreign matter
Particular points of vigilance:
The swelling index
The swelling index is an analysis that must be carried out on the raw plant material or in cut form. Powder form does not provide consistent results in relation to the European Pharmacopoeia specifications.
Why check plant species?
- Checking the quality of your product.
- Determining foreign matter: other plant parts (fraud by substituting cheaper plant organs).
- Contamination by another plant or weeds.
- Presence of organic elements (hairs, insect fragments, etc.).
- Presence of inorganic elements (soil, stones, etc.).
Essential oil content
Certain storage, processing or transport conditions can alter the quality of the material (plant material, food supplements, etc.).
As essential oil is by definition a concentrate of volatile molecules, it is more likely to be altered than other physico-chemical characteristics.
SECTORS
Products concerned by plant physico-chemistry
Phytocontrol supports and advises pharmaceutical, cosmetic, nutraceutical and food industries, as well as suppliers of aromatics, PPAM, liquid/dry plant extracts, natural ingredients and spice traders, in the physico-chemical analysis of plants.
