Indigo Dye Derived from Indigofera Tinctoria as Natural Food Colorant

Abstract

Recently, the uses of dyes are increasingly widespread especially in foods and beverages as food colors to attract the consumers. The dye that currently attracts is indigo. Indigo is a group of carbonyl compounds, one of the oldest known dyes in terms of natural blue dye derived from the Indigofera tinctoria plant. The use of indigo as a natural food dye intended to reduce the use of synthetic dyes are carcinogenic impact. The method used in this study includes the analysis of indigo using UV-Vis spectrophotometry and FTIR analysis. Based on the UV-Vis Spectrophotometer analysis results with the various concentrations of 0.002 mg/mL; 0.004 mg/mL; 0.006 mg/mL and 0.008 mg/mL were obtained maximum absorption peak at wavelength of 550-700 nm. The indigo dyes in various concentrations produce a stable pH at an average pH 9, therefore it can make the colors not easily fade (strong staining). Based on infrared spectrophotometer measurement were obtained absorption spectrum at 3100-3500 cm-1 as primary N-H and secondary amine, 1600 cm-1 as aromatic C=C, 1000-1350 cm-1 as aromatic C-N, 690-900 cm-1 as aromatic C-H.