Qualitative analysis of edible oil oxidation by FTIR spectroscopy using a mesh “cell”

Abstract

To develop a feasible, green, and fast qualitative detection method for identifying edible oil oxidation, peroxide and acid values of oils were measured according to the American Oil Chemists' Society standard. A reference set was developed using common edible oils as raw materials. The qualitative discrimination between oxidised and non-oxidised oils was calibrated based on Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) procedures, which used a mesh cell as a spectral acquisition accessory in combination with Mahalanobis analysis. In the wavenumber range of 3750 cm⁻¹ to 3150 cm⁻¹ after oil film path length normalisation, the recognition rates of the calibration and the external validation models reached up to 100% and 96.9% respectively. The results therefore indicated the method to be as effective as standard methods and others in predicting edible oil oxidation. In conclusion, applying the mesh cell-based FTIR method to qualitatively analyse edible oil oxidation is feasible.