Barfoed's_test
Barfoed's test
Chemical test for monosaccharides
Barfoed's test is a chemical test used for detecting the presence of monosaccharides. It is based on the reduction of copper(II) acetate to copper(I) oxide (Cu2O), which forms a brick-red precipitate.[1][2]
- RCHO + 2Cu2+ + 2H2O → RCOOH + Cu2O↓ + 4H+
(Disaccharides may also react, but the reaction is much slower.) The aldehyde group of the monosaccharide which normally forms a cyclic hemiacetal is oxidized to the carboxylate. A number of other substances, including sodium chloride,[3] may interfere.
Its autor is the Danish chemist Christen Thomsen Barfoed[1] and is primarily used in botany.[citation needed]
The test is similar to the reaction of Fehling's solution to aldehydes.