Jell-O Mixture Lab

The purpose of this lab was to determine which type of pineapple will allow gelatin to form through chemical reactions. There were two pineapple types were fresh and canned, each having their own distinct effects on the Jell-O mixture. The hypothesis stated that if the tinned pineapple is added to the gelatin mixture the solution will turn into a solid (Jelly). This is because when the tinned pineapple is preheated to remove microorganism the bromelain enzymes are destroyed since they do not have the ability to withstand high temperatures such as 100 degrees Celsius. When the protease found in pineapple becomes impractical gelatin can be formed when hot water is added to collagen. Based on the results and observations, it can be confirmed that

There are a few certain errors that are possible to avoid improving the results of the experiment. The ratio between the amount of pineapple, water and gelatin powder were not in balance terms so significant changes can be seen. The exact amount of pineapple could have been measured to improve results instead of using an inappropriate beaker in this case. This alters the final result slightly however not by a significant amount which will change the effect of bromelain on collagen. Nonetheless this could be avoided by smashing the pineapples into small pieces to in the beaker to avoid air gaps. Even the use of a scale to measure the pineapple in grams can be used to improve the ratio between all substances. Every part of the pineapple contains bromelain; however the stem contains the highest percentage of the proteases (Scheve, 2011, para. 3). Both fresh and canned pineapple contained a mixture of all part of the pineapple. A source of experimental error is that the pineapple added to the homogenous mixtures of liquid gelatin contained various concentration of bromelain which altered the result slightly. This is because more bromelain is catalysing the breakdown of collagen. Since there is a higher concentration of bromelain present in the pineapples a more time and a higher temperature is required to stop the catalyzing. This can be avoided by

Examples of these fruits are kiwi, figs, papaya and mangos. All the mentioned fruits contain an anticoagulant enzyme. These enzymes have similar functions to bromelain as they act as natural healers to reduce swelling and heal burns. These enzymes are which allows the breakage of proteins into amino acids. If bromelain and these other enzymes such as actinidin( kiwi) and ficain(figs) perform similar functions then it’s safe to assume that Jell- O formations will not occur in the presence in the form of these fresh fruits. The protein collagen will not change states in the presence of these enzymes (Helmenstine, 2012,