Prior to storage, the moisture content of barley must be determined.
The electrical capacitance of a whole, unground grain sample is measured. The apparatus contains three sensors:
Capacitance
The moisture present in a sample absorbs the electrical energy between the walls of the sample container. The electrical signal or the “capacity” increases with higher moisture contents of the sample and with larger sample sizes.
Oscillating weight balance
The oscillating weight balance measures the frequency to determine the mass.
Temperature correction
The capacitance of the sample rises with the temperature. A Thermistor temperature sensor is built into the sample container. The microprocessor automatically corrects for the moisture content.
Prior to storage, the moisture content of barley must be determined.
Measurement of the electrical resistance in the ground and pressed sample
Malt intended for use in beer brewing or elsewhere in the food industry
The moisture content of malt is determined through the loss in mass during a standardized drying process, in which ground malt is dried at a defined temperature within a specified time in an electrically heated drying oven. The moisture content is determined through the difference in the weight of the malt prior to and after drying.
It should be borne in mind that allowing the weighed sample of ground malt to stand for any length of time prior to performing the analysis can alter the outcome, depending upon the humidity in the air. For this reason, it is recommended that the analysis be carried out immediately after grinding the malt.
For rapid methods, refer to analysis methods R-110.40.022 Moisture Content in Barley – Infrared Drying to R-110.40.183 Moisture Content in Barley – NIT (Verweise).
This method describes how to determine the moisture content of specialty malt.
Specialty malt intended for use in beer brewing or elsewhere in the food industry
Determination of the moisture content in the spent grain
Spent grain
The moisture content is determined by means of the loss in mass during a standardized drying process. For this purpose, the spent grain is dried at a defined temperature over a set time in an electrically heated air drying oven. The moisture content is determined by the difference in weight before and after drying.
If the barley possesses a moisture content of more than 17 % w/w, the whole kernels shold be dried prior to grinding them and determining the moisture content in the (coarsely ground) spent grain. The moisture content of the finely ground spent grain is subsequently determined and the total moisture content calculated from both values.
The moisture content of adjuncts is determined through the loss in mass during a standardized drying process, in which ground malt is dried at a defined temperature within a specified time in an electrically heated drying oven.
The moisture content is determined through the difference in the weight of the adjuncts prior to and after drying.
For samples with a moisture content greater than 17 % (for corn over 15 %), the sample has to be dried prior to conducting the analysis.