FORM 4 : CHAPTER 6 - NUTRITION

ACTIVITY : Determining the energy value in food samples.

Problem : Do different types of food have different energy/ calorific value ?

Statement
Hypothesis : Different types of food have different energy / calorific value .

Manipulated : Different types of food

variable
Responding : Rise in temperature of water
variable
Fixed : Volume of distilled water used
variable

Materials : Fresh ground nuts, fresh cashews nuts, dried margerine, distilled water and
matches

Apparatus : Boiling tubes, retort stand, plasticine, long pins, thermometer electronic
weighing scale, 25ml measuring cylinder

Technique : Measure the rise in temperature of water when heated by different food samples
and then calculate the quantity of heat energy absorbed by the water.

Method : 1. A cashew nut is weighed and its weight record.

2. 20ml of distilled water is poured into a boiling tube.
3. The boiling tube is clamped to a retort stand.
4. The temperature of the distilled water in the boiling tube is recorded.
5. The pointed end of a long pin is poked into a cashew nut. The other end of
the pin is poked into a piece of plasticine.
6. The cashew nut is ignited by using a match stick and immediately placed
under the boiling tube.
7. The flame from the cashew nut is allowed to heat up the water. The water is
stirred gently by using a thermometer to distribute the heat evenly. At the
same time the rise in temperature is observed.
8. The final temperature of the water is recorded in a table.
9. The energy value of the cashew nut is calculated.
10. Steps 1 to 9 are repeated by using groundnut and dried margerine cube .

Result :
Food sample Cashew Ground Dried
nut nut margerine
Weight(g) 0.72 0.54 0.65
Initial temperature of water 30 30 30
(oC)
Final temperature of water (oC) 87 74 91
Rise in temperature (oC) 57 44 61
Conclusion : The energy value of cashew nut is different from the energy value of groundnut.
Cashew nut has a higher energy value than groundnut. The hypothesis is
accepted.

Note :
: The higher the rise in temperature of water, the more the energy value content in
the food sample.
The rise in temperature for cashew nut is higher than groundnut. Therefore, the
energy value for the cashew nut is higher than the groundnut.