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Science 1 May 1964:
Vol. 144. no. 3618, pp. 533 - 534
DOI: 10.1126/science.144.3618.533
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Articles

Beta-Carotene: Thermal Degradation

Irmgard Mader 1

1 Hauptlaboratorium der Margarine Union Hamburg-Bahrenfeld, West Germany

Thermal treatment of crystalline beta-carotene (240°C in a vacuum) results in the formation of a volatile fraction containing chiefly aromatic hydrocarbons such as toluene, m- and p-xylene, 2,6-dimethylnaphthalene, and ionene. These compounds have been identified by means of gas-liquid chromatography, infrared spectroscopy, and, in the case of ionene, by additional nuclear magnetic resonance and mass spectroscopy. The principal degradation product is a yellowish-brown, glutinous mass which can be separated by means of preparative thin-layer chromatography in a number of fractions different in molecular weight. The structure of these fractions is not yet clear.

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Science. ISSN 0036-8075 (print), 1095-9203 (online)