Determination quanitity of nitrates in fresh vegetables

Nitrati u tlu su ionski oblik dušika koji nastaje u ciklusu kruženja dušika. Nitrati iz tla imaju važnu ulogu u hranidbi biljaka jer su jedan od oblika dušika koji omogućuje rast i razvoj biljaka sudjelovanjem u izgradnji njihove organske tvari. Prisutnost i količina nitrata u povrću ovisi o nizu čimbenika kao što su godišnje doba, intenzitet svjetlosti, temperatura, uvjeti rasta, načinu korištenja gnojiva i skladištenje proizvoda. Cilj rada je odrediti, lako pristupačnom metodom, sadržaj nitrata u svježem povrću. U radu je korištena analitička metoda određivanja pomoću Reflectoquant® nitratnog testnog uređaja i testnih trakica. Za određivanje sadržaja nitrata je korišteno svježe povrće odnosno dijelovi koji se koriste u ljudskoj prehrani. Analizirano povrće (mrkva, kupus, krastavac, paprika, rajčica, brokula i zelena salata) prikupljeno je iz lokalnih trgovačkih centara i lokalne tržnice. Količina nitrata je bila najveća u zelenoj salati i kupusu, a najmanja u rajčici.Nitrates in soil are an ionic form of nitrogen that occurs in the nitrogen cycle. Nitrates from soil have an important role in plant nutrition because they are a form of nitrogen that allows plants to grow and develop by participating in the construction of their organic matter. The presence and quantities of nitrates in vegetables depends on a number of factors such as season, light intensity, temperature, growth conditions, fertilizer use and storage. The aim of the study was to determine, by an easily accessible method, the quantity of nitrates in fresh vegetables. The analytical method of determination using the Reflectoquant® nitrate test apparatus and test strips was used in the paper. Fresh vegetables respectively parts used in human consumptio were used to determine the nitrate quantity. The analyzed vegetables (carrots, cabbage, cucumber, peppers, tomatoes, broccoli and lettuce) were collected from local shopping malls and the local market. Nitrate content was highest in lettuce and cabbage and lowest in tomatoes