# Degree Brix

Degree Brix (also ° Brix , ° Bx , Brix , % Brix ; after the Prussian engineer Adolf Ferdinand Wenceslaus Brix , who developed it in 1870) or Degree Brix-Fischer is a unit of measurement of the relative density of liquids .

It is mainly used in the fruit industry , in English-speaking countries also for determining the must weight for wine production - i.e. for fruit juices , beverages and general sugar . Since these mainly contain various sugars in addition to water (especially glucose , fructose , sucrose ), the density is also approximately the sugar content .

In the past, the Fischer oil balance was also used to measure the density of edible oils, named after the German mechanic Carl Fischer , which has the same graduation as the Brix hydrometer.

## determination

Hydrometer , around 1920, Zucker-Museum Berlin.
In order to determine the beet sugar ( dry matter ) content of a sample solution, the solution is poured into the cylinder until the hydrometer just no longer touches the ground (ie “floats”). The immersion depth of the spindle then shows the dry matter content in degrees Brix on the scale : the lower the sugar content and thus the density of the solution, the further the spindle is immersed.

An indication in degrees Brix means: The density of the measured liquid corresponds to the density of a solution of sucrose in water that contains as many grams of sucrose per 100 g of solution as the degree states:

${\ displaystyle \ rho [{\ text {x ° Brix}}] = \ rho \ left [{\ frac {{\ text {x}} \, {\ text {g}} _ {\ text {Sacc}} } {100 \, {\ text {g}} _ {\ text {Lsg}}}} \ right]}$

For example, has a liquid

• one degree Brix if it has the same density as a solution of 1 g of sucrose in 100 g of sucrose / water solution (1 g of sucrose to 99 g of water)
• ten degrees Brix if its density is that of a solution of 10 g of sucrose in 100 g of sucrose-water solution (10 g of sucrose to 90 g of water, corresponds to a ten percent solution).

In this case, sucrose solution is only the comparison substance; the liquid examined does not have to contain sucrose.

## Examples

The following table shows the Brix values ​​of some types of fruit and vegetables . High Brix values ​​indicate a sweeter taste and better shelf life and thus provide information about the quality.

low normal high extremely high
fruit
strawberry 8th 12 16 18th
Aronia 10 12 16 18th
Apple 6th 10 14th 18th
Blueberry 4th 8th 16 22nd
blackberry 6th 8th 12 14th
Cantaloupe melon 8th 12 14th 18th
Honeydew melon 8th 10 14th 16
Watermelon 8th 12 16 18th
Grape 8th 12 18th 22nd
raspberry 6th 8th 12 14th
cherry 6th 8th 14th 16
pear 6th 10 14th 16
orange 6th 10 16 20th
vegetables
potato 3 5 7th 10
endive 4th 6th 10 12
asparagus 4th 6th 8th 10
Bean 4th 8th 10 12
Broccoli 6th 8th 10 12
Pea field pea 4th 6th 10 12
Pea 8th 10 12 14th
cauliflower 4th 6th 8th 10
Cabbage 6th 10 12 14th
Turnip 4th 6th 8th 10
Kohlrabi 6th 8th 10 12
Red beet 6th 8th 12 14th
Corn 6th 10 18th 24
Sweet corn 6th 10 18th 24
paprika 4th 6th 8th 12
Chilli pepper 4th 6th 8th 10
parsley 4th 6th 8th 10
celery 4th 6th 10 12
tomato 4th 6th 10 14th
onion 4th 6th 10 12
carrot 4th 8th 14th 18th