National Chemistry Week - Experiments - Removing Iron from Cereal
Objective:
To remove metallic iron from iron fortified cereal. Iron is the most abundant metallic element in the human body as well as an essential nutrient. The required daily dose of iron is only 18 mg per day; therefore, it is called a micronutrient. Iron is found in hemoglobin and myoglobin. A deficiency of iron causes fatigue and decreased resistance to infection. Cereal is often supplemented with iron. Metallic iron cannot be absorbed by the body; however, iron that's in the oxidized form of Fe3+ is easily absorbed. The addition of iron filings to food is a common method of iron enrichment. The metal filings are not bioavailable until they reach the stomach where they are oxidized to Fe3+.
Materials:
bowl
spoon
water
white
Teflon coated magnetic stirring bar and magnetic stirrer
iron fortified cereal (The label should read reduced iron or 100% iron. The cereal "Total" works well. If a fortified cereal can't be found try a cereal that has a high percentage of iron, e.g. Weetabix.)
Procedure:
Add the cereal and water in a bowl and stir until the cereal becomes soggy.
Place the stirring bar in the bowl and stir for about 30 min.
Remove the stirring bar, gently rinse off any cereal and look for small dark iron filings on the magnet. The filings should appear as small dark dots on the magnet. Sometimes the filings will clump together. If you are having difficulty seeing the filings try looking with a magnifying glass.
