[Blitzcrank55]

Hey,

For our science project we need to figure out a way of calculating the amount of caffeine and sugar in the following ingredients:

banana
sports protein bar
another sports protein bar
chocolate bar
another random candy bar

Is there a way to find the exact amount of caffeine and sugar in each of these ingredients?

Thanks for your help,
Louis

[Arkcon]

Yes.  But the procedures aren't trivial, for a high school student.  For one thing, the items pose matrix problems -- it will be harder to analyze for caffeine in the sports bars, as an example.  You also don't mention to what level of accuracy you need these numbers.  And sugar can mean many things, chemically.  You'll have to think harder, and try to find something simpler.  Caffeine in a soda, now that you might be able to learn how to do.

[Corribus]

I designed a caffeine extraction from soda for my high school chemistry product, and tried to compare the amounts in various soda brands. I was successful in the extraction, but the noise level in quantity of caffeine exceeded the differences between brands so I couldn't really make any conclusions. I agree with Arkcon, also - extracting from a solid matrix is going to be far more difficult, probably beyond what your instrumental capabilities are in a high school facility.