Scoville scale scale, and may vary in content during ripening. Capsaicin is the major capsaicinoid in chili peppers. Scoville scale The Scoville scale is a measurement of the pungency (spiciness or "heat") of chili peppers and other spicy foods, as recorded in Scoville Heat Units (SHU) based on the concentration of capsaicinoids, among which capsaicin is the predominant component. The scale is named after its creator, American pharmacist Wilbur Scoville, whose 1912 method is known as the Scoville organoleptic test. In the 21st century, high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) is used to quantify the capsaicinoid content as an indicator of pungency. The most
Scoville scale the parts-per-million by 16." HPLC results permit the measurement of a substance’s capsaicin capacity to produce perceived heat ("pungency"). This method yields results in American Spice Trade Association (ASTA) "pungency units", which are defined as one part capsaicin per million parts dried pepper mass. For parts per million (ppm) measurements: "Scoville Heat Units are calculated in parts per million of heat (ppm H) based on sample dry weight according to the following equation from ASTA (1985): ppm H = [Peak area of capsaicin + (0.82)(peak area of dihydrocapsaicin)](ppm standard)(ml acetonitrile) ÷ (Total capsaicin peak area of standard)(g sample). Conversion to