Yunwei Niu

Characterization of aroma compounds of Chinese famous liquors by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry and flash GC electronic-nose

Aroma composition of five Chinese premium famous liquors with different origins and liquor flavor types was characterized by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) and flash gas chromatographic electronic nose system. Eighty-six aroma compounds were identified, including 5 acids, 34 esters, 10 alcohols, 9 aldehydes, 4 ketones, 4 phenols, and 10 nitrous and sulfuric compounds. To investigate possible correlation between aroma compounds identified by GC-MS and sensory attributes, multivariate ANOVA-PLSR (APLSR) was performed. It turned out that there were 30 volatile composition, ethyl acetate, ethyl propanoate, ethyl 2-methyl butanoate, ethyl 3-methyl butanoate, ethyl lactate, ethyl benzenacetate, 3-methylbutyl acetate, hexyl acetate, 3-methyl-1-butanol, 1-heptanol, phenylethyl alcohol, acetaldehyde, 1,1-diethoxy-3-methyl butane, furfural, benzaldehyde, 5-methyl-2-furanal, 2-octanone, 2-n-butyl furan, dimethyl trisulfied and 2,6-dimethyl pyrazine, ethyl nonanoate, isopentyl hexanoate, octanoic acid, ethyl 5-methyl hexanoate, 2-phenylethyl acetate,ethyl oleate, propyl hexanoate, butanoic acid and phenol, ethyl benzenepropanoate, which showed good coordination with Chinese liquor characteristics. The multivariate structure of this electronic nose responses was then processed by principal component analysis (PCA) and hierarchical cluster analysis (HCA). According to the obtained results, GC-MS and electronic nose can be used for the differentiation of the liquor origins and flavor types.

A review of the preparation and application of flavour and essential oils microcapsules based on complex coacervation technology

This paper briefly introduces the preparation and application of flavour and essential oils microcapsules based on complex coacervation technology. The conventional encapsulating agents of oppositely charged proteins and polysaccharides that are used for microencapsulation of flavours and essential oils are reviewed along with the recent advances in complex coacervation methods. Proteins extracted from animal-derived products (gelatin, whey proteins, silk fibroin) and from vegetables (soy proteins, pea proteins), and polysaccharides such as gum Arabic, pectin, chitosan, agar, alginate, carrageenan and sodium carboxymethyl cellulose are described in depth. In recent decades, flavour and essential oils microcapsules have found numerous potential practical applications in food, textiles, agriculturals and pharmaceuticals. In this paper, the different coating materials and their application are discussed in detail. Consequently, the information obtained allows criteria to be established for selecting a method for the preparation of microcapsules according to their advantages, limitations and behaviours as carriers of flavours and essential oils.

Comparison of Aroma-Active Volatiles in Oolong Tea Infusions Using GC–Olfactometry, GC–FPD, and GC–MS

The aroma profile of oolong tea infusions (Dongdingwulong, DDWL; Tieguanyin, TGY; Dahongpao, DHP) were investigated in this study. Gas chromatography-olfactometry (GC-O) with the method of aroma intensity (AI) was employed to investigate the aroma-active compounds in tea infusions. The results presented forty-three, forty-five, and forty-eight aroma-active compounds in the TGY, DHP, and DDWL infusions, including six, seven, and five sulfur compounds, respectively. In addition, the concentration of volatile compounds in the tea infusions was further quantitated by solid phase microextraction-gas chromatography (SPME)-GC-MS and SPME-GC-flame photometric detection (FPD). Totally, seventy-six and thirteen volatile and sulfur compounds were detected in three types of tea infusions, respectively. Quantitative results showed that forty-seven aroma compounds were at concentrations higher than their corresponding odor thresholds. On the basis of the odor activity values (OAVs), 2-methylpropanal (OAV: 230-455), 3-methylbutanal (1-353), 2-methylbutanal (34-68), nerolidol (108-184), (E)-2-heptenal (148-294), hexanal (134-230), octanal (28-131), β-damascenone (29-59), indole (96-138), 6-methyl-5-hepten-2-one (34-67), (R)-(-)-linalool (63-87), and dimethyl sulfide (7-1320) presented relatively higher OAVs than those of other compounds, indicating the importance of these compounds in the overall aroma of tea infusions.

Rapid measuring and modelling flavour quality changes of oxidised chicken fat by electronic nose profiles through the partial least squares regression analysis.

The objective of this study was to investigate whether an electronic nose, comprising 18 metal oxide semiconductor gas sensors, could be used for measuring and modelling flavour quality changes of refined chicken fat during controlled oxidation. Partial least squares regression (PLSR) was applied to determine the predictive relationships between the chemical parameters, GC-MS data, free fatty acid profiles and electronic nose responses for controlled oxidation of refined chicken fat. The results showed that peroxide value (PV) and acid value (AV) were significantly well predicted by the electronic nose responses, whereas p-anisidine value (p-AV) was found to be fairly well predicted especially for deeply oxidised chicken fat. Thus, this study gave evidence of the electronic nose system to be a promising device for future at- or on-line implementation in oxidation control of chicken fat for producing meat flavourings.

Contribution of beef base to aroma characteristics of beeflike process flavour assessed by descriptive sensory analysis and gas chromatography olfactometry and partial least squares regression

Descriptive sensory analysis and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) analysis were conducted to investigate changes in aroma characteristics of beeflike process flavours (BPFs) prepared from enzymatically hydrolyzed beef (beef base) of different DH (degree of hydrolysis) with other ingredients. Five attributes (beefy, meaty, simulate, mouthful and roasted) were selected to assess BPFs. The results of descriptive sensory analysis confirmed that BPF2 from beef base of moderate DH 29.13% was strongest in beefy, meaty and simulate characteristics; BPF4 and BPF5 from beef base of higher DH (40.43% and 44.22%, respectively) were superior in mouthful and roasted attributes respectively; while BPF0 without beef base gave weaker odour for all attributes. Twenty six compounds from GC-MS were selected as specific compounds to represent beef odour based on their odour-active properties assessed by a detection frequency method of GC-O and correlation of their contents with sensory attributes intensity. Correlation analysis of molecular weight (MW) of peptides, odour-active compounds and sensory attributes through partial least squares regression (PLSR) further explained that beef base with DH of 29.13% was a desirable precursor for imparting aroma characteristics of beeflike process flavour.

Contribution of oxidized tallow to aroma characteristics of beeflike process flavour assessed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry and partial least squares regression.

Flavour profiles of seven beeflike process flavours (BFs) including non-oxidized or oxidized tallow were comparatively analysed by electronic nose, gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) and descriptive sensory analysis to characterize the headspace of BFs. Analysis of volatiles by GC-MS indicated that the effect of oxidized tallow with moderate oxidization level on Maillard reaction was more prominent than that of others, which potentially could result in an optimal meat flavour with strong, harmony and species-specific characteristics detected by sensory analysis. In addition, electronic nose data confirmed the accuracy of the GC-MS and sensory analysis results. Correlation analysis of the electronic nose measurements, sensory evaluation and characteristic compounds through Partial Least Squares Regression (PLSR) further explained that moderate oxidized tallow with peroxide value (PV) of 87.67-160 mequiv./kg, the p-anisidine value (p-AV) of 30.57-50, and the acid value (AV) of 1.8-2.2 mg KOH/g tallow was a desirable precursor for imparting aroma characteristics of beef flavour.

Optimization and application of headspace-solid-phase micro-extraction coupled with gas chromatography–mass spectrometry for the determination of volatile compounds in cherry wines

A simple, rapid and solvent-free multi-residue method has been developed and applied to confirm and quantify a series of volatile compounds in five cherry wines by gas chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry (GC-MS). Four parameters (e.g., coating material of fiber, temperature and time of extraction, and addition of sodium chloride in the solution) of headspace solid-phase micro-extraction (HS-SPME) were optimized, resulting in the best extraction condition including 50/30 μm DVB/CAR/PDMS fiber, 45 min and 50 °C of SPME, and 2g of sodium chloride addition in the wine during the extraction. The SPME had LODs and LOQs ranging from 0.03 to 7.27 μg L(-1) and 0.10 to 24.24 μg L(-1) for analytic compounds, respectively. Repeatability and reproducibility values were all below 19.8%, with mean values of 12.7% and 10.5%, respectively. Regression coefficients (R(2)) of detective linearity of the standard curves was higher than 0.9852. Moreover, relative recoveries of analytical targets were achieved in a range of 60.7-125.6% with good relative standard deviation values (≤20.6%). In addition, a principal component analysis (PCA) was used to analyze the aroma profiles of the wines, which indicated that five samples were distinctly divided into two groups based on their different geographical origins and volatile compounds.

Comparison of Aroma-Active Compounds and Sensory Characteristics of Durian (Durio zibethinus L.) Wines Using Strains of Saccharomyces cerevisiae with Odor Activity Values and Partial Least-Squares Regression

The study evaluated the effects of five different strains (GRE, RC212, Lalvin D254, CGMCC2.4, and CGMCC2.23) of the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae on the aromatic characteristics of fermented durian musts. In this work, 38 and 43 compounds in durian juices and wines were analyzed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) and GC-pulsed flame photometric detection (GC-PFPD) with the aid of stir bar sorptive extraction (SBSE), respectively. According to the measured odor activity values (OAV), only 11 and 15 aroma compounds had OAVs >1 in durian juices or wines, among which 2,3-butanedione, 3-methylbutanol, dimethyl sulfide, dimethyl disulfide, methyl ethyl disulfide, ethyl 2-methylbutanoate, ethyl butanoate, and ethyl octanoate were major contributors to the aroma of juices and wines. Partial least-squares regression (PLSR) was used to detect positive correlations between sensory analysis and aroma compounds. The results showed that the attributes were closely related to aroma compounds.

Evaluation of the synergism among volatile compounds in Oolong tea infusion by odour threshold with sensory analysis and E-nose

Twenty-four kinds of representative aroma compounds in Oolong tea were selected to evaluate the interactions by the variation in the threshold values of these compounds before, and after, they were mixed. Result demonstrated that the ratios of the referenced threshold values of heptanal, β-damascenone, and methional to their determined thresholds were larger, namely, 5, 3.85, and 2.5, respectively. On the other hand, the mixed compounds with similar structure and aroma mainly presented a synergistic effect and additive action. Moreover, a masking effect was found among compounds with different structures. (E)-2-hexenal was added to tea infusion at a concentration below its threshold level to investigate whether, or not, the sub-threshold compounds affected the overall odour sensation of Oolong tea by sensory analysis and electronic nose (E-nose). The result indicated that the aroma of the tea infusion with added (E)-2-hexenal had changed before, and after, they were mixed.

Characterization of odor-active compounds of various Chrysanthemum essential oils by gas chromatography–olfactometry, gas chromatography–mass spectrometry and their correlation with sensory attributes

Volatiles of five kinds of Chrysanthemum essential oils with different manufactures were characterized by descriptive sensory analysis, gas chromatography-olfactometry (GC-O), gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) and statistics analysis. Six sensory attributes (floral, woody, grassy, fruity, sour and minty) were selected to assess Chrysanthemum essential oils. A total of 38 volatile compounds were detected and quantified using standard substances by GC-O and GC-MS. Terpenes constituted the largest chemical group among the volatiles of the essential oils. Then partial least squares regression (PLSR) was used to elucidate the relationship between sensory attributes and aroma compounds. The result showed that α-pinene, β-thujene, α-terpinolen, β-cubebene, caryophyllene, (Z)β-farnesene, (-)-spathulenol, linalool, camphor, camphene, 4-terpineol, Z-citral and 4-isopropyltoluene were typical aroma compounds covaried with characteristic aroma of Chrysanthemum essential oils.