I've been reading some studies that relate to food and some of the discuss the pH of solid foods, however I've also come across a post on Quora that says the following in response to a question about the pH of olive oil:

Quote

It doesn't have one. pH is a measure of the hydrogen ion (H+) concentration in an aqueous solution. There is no water in any oil, therefore no free hydrogen ions, therefore no pH.

So, if pH is a value that only applies to aqueous solutions, how come these studies I'm reading are giving pH values for solid foods?

2 minutes ago, Alfred001 said:

I've been reading some studies that relate to food and some of the discuss the pH of solid foods, however I've also come across a post on Quora that says the following in response to a question about the pH of olive oil:

So, if pH is a value that only applies to aqueous solutions, how come these studies I'm reading are giving pH values for solid foods?

Because you consume foods in a solution... that's what matters.

Can you explain?

A substance is not acid or alkaline until the ions they contain dissociate. The OH-/H+ ions need to be free to move around and interact to express it. If they are tied up in a crystal lattice, they can't do much.

First let me say that everything stringy said is correct.

However it is not the answer to your question.

Animals and plants are 70% to 80% water.

And what is food ?

Largely dead plant and animal material.

So it contains a substantial amount of water, even if dried out by cooking, and apparantly 'solid'.

 

With regard to the olive oil, it will contain some water, but is it a solid ?

 

Think also  of gardening. You purchase a pH meter with a probe you shove into the 'solid' soil and get a reading for the soil pH.

Why?

Because of stringy's ions in the incorporated water.

 

So the Quora respondent is just plain wrong in this instance.

Watch this space: 'A Unified pH Scale for All Phases'

2 hours ago, sethoflagos said:

Watch this space: 'A Unified pH Scale for All Phases'

Cool! Nice share.