592  Cane  Sugar  in  Official  Syrups. 
A  slightly  straw-colored  syrup  contained  564  per  cent.;  an 
old  brown-yellow  specimen,  62-3  per  cent.,  and  a  straw-colored 
specimen,  six  months  old,  58-2  per  cent,  of  inverted  sugar. 
The  salts  of  hypophosphorous  acid  have  no  reducing  action  upon 
Fehling's  solution. 
SYRUPS  CONTAINING  FREE  ORGANIC  ACIDS. 
Organic  acids  also  have  the  power  of  inverting  saccharose, 
although  not  in  as  pronounced  a  degree  as  mineral  acids. 
The  results,  so  far  as  decomposition  or  color  changes,  such  as 
precipitation  of  grape  sugar  or  darkening  of  syrups,  are  concerned, 
do  not  appear  as  prominently. 
The  experiments  of  Kulisch,  mentioned  before,  indicate  that  heat 
and  the  amount  of  free  acid  are  important  factors  in  the  course  of 
inversion. 
The  latter  view  is  substantiated  by  the  results  of  the  writer,  but 
with  the  possible  exception  of  the  rapidity  with  which  inversion 
takes  place,  a  considerable  increase  in  temperature  is  not  necessary. 
Prolonged  contact  of  an  organic  acid  with  a  cane-sugar  solution 
will  invert  the  saccharose  at  a  temperature  of  6o°  to  yo°  F. 
This  was  found  to  be  the  case  with  syrup  of  citric  acid. 
The  official  syrups  examined  of  the  organic  acid  group  were  the 
following : 
Syrup  of  citric  acid,  squill,  ipecacuanha  and  acacia. 
Syrup  of  garlic,  being  deeply  colored,  was  not  investigated. 
SYRUP  OF  CITRIC  ACID. 
The  phenomena  of  inversion  of  cane  sugar  in  syrups  with  free 
organic  acids  were  first  observed  in  this  preparation.  Due  to  the 
absence  of  color,  therefore  permitting  an  accurate  examination  with 
Fehling's  solution,  it  is  particularly  convenient. 
The  observations  on  the  following  specimen  cover  a  period  of 
eleven  months : 
Syrup  of  citric  acid  was  made  according  to  official  directions,  the 
simple  syrup  used  in  its  preparation  having  but  feeble  reducing 
action. 
After  standing  twenty-four  hours,  signs  of  the  presence  of  in- 
verted sugar  made  their  appearance. 
Am.  Jour.  Pharm. 
December,  lb98. 
