Abstract :
[en] Food additives are substances intentionally added to food to enhance preservation, texture, appearance, or taste – examples include emulsifiers, stabilizers, and preservatives. While their functional roles are well-documented, limited data exists regarding potential impurities they may contain. Mineral oil saturated and aromatic hydrocarbons (MOSH & MOAH) and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are examples of chemical contaminants that could be found in these matrices, specifically in food additives derived from fats and oils due to the hydrophobic character of the contaminants.
Traditionally, the analysis of MOSH/MOAH and PAHs is conducted separately due to their differing analytical requirements – most notably the limits of detection (mg/kg levels for MOSH/MOAH vs. µg/kg levels for PAHs), as well as the integration strategy, since MOSH/MOAH are not quantified as individual compounds but as unresolved humps.
In this study, we propose a novel analytical workflow that enables simultaneous determination of both contaminant groups using an HPLC/GC(×GC)-FID/TOFMS system. The method is adapted from ISO 21022:2024, originally developed for MOSH/MOAH analysis in vegetable oils, with modifications in the order of sample preparation steps to reconcile the specific analytical requirements of each group of contaminants. These changes also enabled miniaturization of key purification steps (epoxidation, Alox purification), resulting in approximately a fivefold reduction in solvent and reagent consumption.
As a proof of concept, the workflow was evaluated on E471 (mono- and diglycerides of fatty acids), an emulsifier commonly used in food applications such as baked goods, margarine, and confectionery. This matrix presented challenges due to high levels of recalcitrant interferences, for which GC×GC proved particularly beneficial.
