HPLC analysis of the percent composition of alpha acid homologues in commercial hops

CHED 237

Zachary D. Zuschlag, zuschlagzd@washjeff.edu, Department of Chemistry, Washington & Jefferson College, 60 South Lincoln St., Washington, PA 15301 and Patricia A. Brletic, pbrletic@washjeff.edu, Department of Chemistry, Washington and Jefferson College, 60 South Lincoln St., Washington, PA 15301.
Hops, the female flowers of Humulus lupulus, are used in the process of brewing to add bitterness, flavor and aroma to beer. The main components of hops that contribute to bitterness are alpha acids of which there are three homologues; humulone, adhumulone, and cohumulone. Since alpha acids have an impact on the final brewed product, the quantity and relative percent composition of the acids in hops is of utmost importance to the brewer in order to obtain the desired bitterness in the product. In this study hops with known percentages of total alpha acids were analyzed with HPLC to determine the percent composition of each alpha acid homologue. Several types of hops were analyzed and the results compared to determine if hops with similar total alpha acid content would contain the same relative percentages of each alpha acid homologue or if the percentage composition of the components would differ.
 

Undergraduate Research Poster Session: Analytical Chemistry
11:00 AM-1:00 PM, Monday, April 7, 2008 Morial Convention Center -- Hall A, Poster

Division of Chemical Education

The 235th ACS National Meeting, New Orleans, LA, April 6-10, 2008