Higher Education Keeps Brewing Innovation In Coffee Science, MIT Joins With Cutting-Edge Classes – CoffeeTalk

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MIT students are revolutionizing coffee brewing with cutting-edge science, using advanced tools like infrared spectrometers to study the impact of additives like anise and chili oil on the coffee’s chemical profile. The class 3,000 (Coffee Matters: Using the Breakerspace to Make the Perfect Cup) combines lectures on chemistry and coffee science with hands-on experiments and group projects. Students like Elaine Jutamulia and Omar Orozco experiment with additives to enhance coffee flavors, employing advanced instruments like infrared spectrometers to dissect the impact on coffee’s chemical profile.

The class focuses on how additives such as anise, salt, and chili oil affect coffee extraction, the process of dissolving flavor compounds from ground coffee into water. They use an infrared spectrometer to identify the chemical compounds in their coffee samples that contribute to flavor. The goal is to find if anise makes bitter coffee smoother or could chili oil balance the taste.

The class has been widely popular, enrolling more than 50 students. Its success was driven by the beverage at its core and the class’s hands-on approach, which pushes students to ask and answer questions they might not have otherwise. For aeronautics and astronautics majors Gabi McDonald and McKenzie Dinesen, coffee was the draw, but the class encouraged them to experiment and think in new ways.

Students first learn to operate Breakerspace equipment through guided tasks and then form groups to design projects exploring specific questions about coffee chemistry and composition. In the MIT Breakerspace, a new space on campus conceived and managed by the Department of Materials Science and Engineering (DMSE), students use equipment such as a digital optical microscope to examine ground coffee particles and a scanning electron microscope to reveal cross-sections of beans in stunning detail. Once students learn to operate instruments for guided tasks, they form groups and design their own projects.

The interdisciplinary approach and student projects at MIT Coffee Matters class began with Professor Jeffrey Grossman’s vision for the Breakerspace, a laboratory for materials analysis and lounge for MIT undergraduates. Opened in November 2023, the space gives students hands-on experience with materials science and engineering, an interdisciplinary field combining chemistry, physics, and engineering to probe the composition and structure of materials.

In conclusion, MIT students are revolutionizing coffee brewing with cutting-edge science, using advanced tools like infrared spectrometers to study the impact of additives on coffee flavor and chemical composition. This innovative approach to coffee studies is expected to inspire students and help them explore their passion for coffee.

The 3,000 class at MIT was a unique and engaging experience for students, who were inspired by the complexity of coffee and its various properties. The students were taught by a teacher who had extensive knowledge of coffee, including the fact that black coffee isn’t naturally bitter but rather arises from certain compounds developed during the roasting process. The students also explored the effects of different coffee types, such as under-extracted and over-extracted coffee, and how they could fix bad coffee using Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy.

The students also explored the effects of freezing coffee and its effects on flavor and chemical composition. They compared methods like freezing brewed coffee, frozen coffee grounds, and whole beans ground after freezing, evaluating their impact on flavor and chemical composition. The team used a class coffee review sheet to record attributes like acidity, bitterness, sweetness, and overall flavor, pairing the results with FTIR analysis to determine how storage affected taste.

Other student projects explored caffeine levels in different coffee types, analyzed the effect of microwaving coffee on its chemical composition and flavor, and investigated the differences between authentic and counterfeit coffee beans. The Breakerspace manager and co-teacher of the class, Justin Lavallee, encouraged the students to focus on something they wanted to learn more about.

The students gained deeper insights into the beverage, learning about the science and chemistry of coffee, as well as new brewing techniques. They even made coffee a part of their study routine, brewing and testing different methods while working on problem sets for their other classes. Tony Chen, a materials science and engineering major, reflected on the 3,000 class’s title — “Using the Breakerspace to Make the Perfect Cup” — and whether making a perfect cup is possible.

The excitement for coffee’s complexity and the discovery process was exactly what Grossman hoped to inspire in his students. He recalled a moment early in the class when students saw the surface texture of a magnified coffee bean, the mottled shades of color, and the honeycomb-like pattern of tiny irregular cells under the microscope. They were inspired by the learning and went on to try different methods, which helped them develop their own sense of curiosity.

Source: Coffee Talk

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