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| Rapid Analyses of Amino Acids The German firm of Degussa, with operations in the United
States, has been providing AminoNIR™ as a service to its customers
in the feed industry, has offered a rapid near-infrared spectroscopy
(NIR) method for analyzing amino acids in feedstuffs. A firm can either
send samples of feedstuffs to Degussa for analysis or they can use standard
calibrations that have been standardized and calibrated with Degussa
equations. The NIR technology enables the exchange of calibrations between
different instruments and laboratories. The concept is that a central
laboratory will establish a robust calibration and the transfer the
calibration to NIR instruments in local laboratories. The central laboratory
has the responsibility to continuously update the calibration using
standards samples and ingredient samples that are outside the normal
range of the target nutrient. The company has conducted several collaborative
studies to determine the accuracy of transferring the calibration to
individual laboratories. In study involving sixteen laboratories and
twenty feed ingredient samples they found the coefficient of variation
for the major amino acids to be in the order of 3 to 3.5 percent. The
authors indicated that the calibrations for soybean meal and sunflower
meal gave results with minimal variation due to more robust calibrations.
(Note: This report has importance to the soybean industry because it
demonstrates the concept of using a central laboratory to maintain a
robust calibration for NIR analyses. NIR techniques will be needed to
assess nutrient changes in value-added soybean varieties). |
