Sørensen formol titration


The Sørensen formol titration invented by S. P. L. Sørensen in 1907 is a largely archaic method that was once used to determine the amino acid content of a sample. It is used in the determination of protein content in samples.
In case of tyrosine, the actual results are too high due to the negative hydroxyl group, which acts as a base. This explanation is supported by the fact that phenylalanine can be accurately titrated.

Method

The titration of an amino acid with potassium hydroxide in the presence of formaldehyde.

In winemaking

Formol titration is used in winemaking to measure yeast assimilable nitrogen needed by wine yeast in order to complete fermentation.A related analysis method is o-phthaldialdehyde/N-acetyl-L-cysteine spectrophotometric assay.