Page 148 - Encyclopedia of Chemical Compounds 3 Vols

P. 148

ASCORBIC ACID

Words to Know

REDUCTION Chemical reaction in which SYNTHESIS Chemical reaction in which some
oxygen is removed from a substance or desired chemical product is made from
electrons are added to a substance. simple beginning chemicals, or reactants.

In addition to its nutritional uses, ascorbic acid has a
number of other industrial applications, including:
• As a food preservative;
• As a reducing agent in chemical processes;
• As a preservative in foods;
• As a color fixing agent in meats, helping meats keep
their bright red appearance;
• As an additive to bread dough, where it helps increase
the activity of yeast used in the dough; and
• As a treatment for abscission in citrus plants, the ten-
dency for a plant to lose its leaves, flowers, and fruits.

FOR FUR THER INFO RMAT ION
‘‘Ascorbic Acid.’’ International Programme on Chemical Safety.
http://www.inchem.org/documents/icsc/icsc/eics0379.htm
(accessed on September 21, 2005).
Carpenter, Kenneth J. The History of Scurvy and Vitamin C.
Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 1986.
‘‘L Ascorbic Acid.’’ University of Texas at Austin College of Engi
neering Department of Biomedical Engineering.
http://www.engr.utexas.edu/bme/ugrad/UGLab/resources/
MSDS/ascorbic%20acid.pdf (accessed on September 21, 2005).
Mead, Clifford, and Thomas Hager, eds. Linus Pauling: Scientist
and Peacemaker. Portland, OR: Oregon State University Press,
2001.