Optical properties of honey: FTIR spectroscopy and refractometry

115 samples of honey of various botanical types, geographical origin and harvest year (2019– 2021) were analysed using attenuated total reflection infrared spectroscopy of impaired total reflection, refractometry and biochemical analysis. Initial honey samples in liquid and crystallised states were investigated. Crystalline D-glucopyranose (glucose), D-fructopyranose (fructose), their 40% solutions and invert sugar were used as auxiliary substances. Biochemical analysis was used to determine the glucose content in honey samples. Based on the obtained data, a relationship between the results of biochemical analysis and refractometry (refractive index, the content of invert sugars, humidity) was established. We deduced equations that allow the content of glucose and fructose in honey to be evaluated by the refractive index. Studying honey by IR spectroscopy showed that all investigated samples, regardless of the botanical and geographical origins, can be classified into three groups dominated by: I – glucose, II – fructose and III – mixed, with a close content of two monosaccharides. This allowed the bands characteristic of α- and β-pyranose forms of glucose and fructose to be identified, as well as the nature of their changes depending on the ratio of both monosaccharides in honey as a result of their crystallisation to be assessed. It is noted that the ratio of monosaccharides determines not only the stability of the liquid crystal structure and crystallisation rate in honey but also their optical, biochemical and nutritional properties, which are important for the preferred use of honey in medical and pharmacopoeial practice, dietetics and cosmetology.

ROTATIONS OF TORI IN A LIQUID CRYSTAL STRUCTURE

Liquid crystals are a collection of flattened molecules. On the one hand, they have a welldefined structure, on the other hand, this structure is deformable, since its elements can change their position in space. In columnar structures, consisting of disks, plates, and tori, the fluid lines and cords are distinguished. In the case of tori and circular disks, a hexagonal structure of the arrangement of molecules is observed in a combination of the cord. The aim of this work is to obtain the stability of tori positions in an elementary fragment of a liquid crystal and to analyze their rotations in a self-consistent field of the surrounding toroidal molecules. To solve this problem, the method of mathematical modeling was used, based on classical models of molecular dynamics. The calculation is carried out on the basis of the model of cross-atom-atom interactions for molecular tori. The minimal fragment of the cord is selected, which makes it possible to determine the characteristic dynamic state of the central torus in the fragment. To describe the motion of the molecular tori, the equations of motion for their centers of mass and the Euler equations for their angular displacements are used. The minimal fragment of the material contains twenty-nine tori. The equations for displacements of the centers of mass of the tori are initially represented as ordinary differential equations of the second order. However, by introducing fictitious points into the consideration of velocities, they can be reduced to a system of first-order equations with a doubled number of lower-order equations. The resulting system of the first-order differential equations is integrated numerically using a highorder accuracy step-by-step scheme. All calculations are performed with a constant time step. The accuracy of the obtained numerical results is verified in terms of the balance of total energy of the system. Calculations show that the central torus of the presented fragment executes angular oscillations around its main axis with amplitude of more than one revolution. Thus, the performed calculations show that a representative fragment of the liquid crystal structure of molecular tori can be used as a generator of high-frequency mechanical vibrations.