ðə mˈɛθəd kənsˈɪsts ʌv hˈiːɾɪŋ ɐ sˈæmpəl tə θɹˈiːhˈʌndɹɪd sˈɪksti fˈoːɹhˈʌndɹɪd tˈɛn dᵻɡɹˈiːz sˈiː wɪð kˈɑːnsəntɹˌeɪɾᵻd sʌlfjˈʊɹɹɪk ˈæsɪd ˈeɪtʃ tˈuː sˌoʊ fˈoːɹ, wˌɪtʃ dˌiːkəmpˈoʊzᵻz"daɪdʒˈɛsts" ɔːɹ "dᵻstɹˈʌkts"ðɪ ɔːɹɡˈænɪk sˈæmpəl baɪ ˌɑːksɪdˈeɪʃən tə lˈɪbɚɹˌeɪt ðə ɹᵻdˈuːst nˈaɪtɹədʒən æz æmˈoʊniəm sˈʌlfeɪt.
The method consists of heating a sample to 360–410 °C with concentrated sulfuric acid (H2SO4), which decomposes ("digests" or "destructs") the organic sample by oxidation to liberate the reduced nitrogen as ammonium sulfate.