Effect of Temperature on Stability of Hydrogen Peroxide in Milk

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Abstract
The rate of decomposition of hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) was determined in distilled water, phosphate buffer (pH 7.0), sterilized reconstituted nonfat dried milk, sterilized whole milk, and raw whole milk at 37.8, 48.9, 54.4 and 57.2 C. The media ranked in order of increasing stability of H2O2 were raw whole milk, the 2 sterilized milks, phosphate buffer and distilled water. Rates of decomposition increased with increases in temperature for all media except raw milk, which showed a decrease presumably caused by the action of lactoperoxidase and catalase at 37.8 and 48.9 C. Decomposition levels were similar in raw and sterilized milks at 54.4 and 57.2 indicating little enzymatic decomposition at these temperatures.