Digital Refractometer for % Glucose By Weight Analysis

This Hanna Instruments digital refractometer measures glucose concentration by weight.

Why it is measured

Glucose syrups are dosed by concentration in brewing, confectionery and fermentation feeds, and a syrup delivered at the wrong strength changes the result without changing the recipe. Checking on arrival is cheaper than diagnosing it later.

Where it is used

• brewing adjunct control
• confectionery production
• fermentation feed preparation
• incoming syrup checks

How a refractometer works

Light bends by a different amount depending on how much is dissolved in a liquid. A refractometer measures that bend and converts it to a concentration scale. It needs one or two drops, gives an answer in seconds, and has no reagents and nothing to consume.

A digital instrument compensates for temperature automatically, which is the difference that matters: refractive index shifts with temperature enough that an uncompensated reading in a warm room is simply wrong.

Practical note

Warm a viscous syrup to a known temperature and let it settle on the prism; trapped air reads low and is easy to miss.

Supplied as one model.