ATR-FTIR FOR CHARACTERIZING AND DIFFERENTIATING DRIED AND GROUND COFFEE CHERRY PULP OF DIFFERENT VARIETIES (Coffea Arabica L.)

ABSTRACT This study aimed to evaluate the performance of the infrared spectrum in the range of 4000−650 cm−1 for characterizing and differentiating dried and ground coffee cherry pulp of different varieties. The spectral data were subjected to first and second derivative treatments to perform the statistical analyses. Three varieties of coffee pulp were previously characterized for color, water activity, moisture, chlorogenic acids, and caffeine. The results of principal component analysis (PCA) showed that Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy is a viable technique for characterizing and differentiating dried and ground coffee cherry pulp among different varieties, showing the best differentiation with treatment of data from the first derivative, which was mainly associated with the caffeine content and chlorogenic acids. This study is the first investigation of FTIR spectroscopy with attenuated total reflectance for characterizing dried and ground coffee cherry pulp from coffee varieties grown in Colombia.