Determination of glucose by means of sodium chlorite

The oxidation of several a ldoses w ith acid sodium chlorite solution was investiO'ated in orde r to obtain a m e thod for the determinatio n of aldehyde groups in sugars a~d their poly mers.The kinetics of the oxidation of glucose and ccllobiose were studied over the experimental ranges 3.4 to 4.4 pH, 30° to 65° C, 0.005-to 0.15-M sodium chlorite, and 0.00006-to 0.0016-.M aldose, both by the determination of the change in chlorite concentration by iodometric t itration and by the photomet ric meas urement of CI02 form ed. The rate of oxidation was found to be a pproximately first order with respe ct to aldose and chlorous acid .The meas urement of t he ox idation was compli cated by the second-order decompositio n of chlorous acid.This decomposition was corrected for by a calibration cur ve and an app roxi mate formula derived from the reaction kinetic .Use of either of t hese corrections gave experim ental values for glu cose within a few perce nt of the theo retical value.Meli biose, maltose, a nd lactose we re oxidized at about the same rate as glu cose and cellobiose.N onreducing s ugars and s ugar acids were not appre ciably oxidi zed under t he experim ental cond ition used.