Isotope dilution quantification of 5-hydroxymethyl-2-furaldehyde in beverages using vortex-assisted liquid–liquid microextraction coupled with ESI-HPLC-MS/MS

Abstract

Vortex-assisted liquid–liquid microextraction (VALLME) is a fast and simple pretreatment method, which has been applied for the clean-up of beverages containing caramel color. Herein, a reversed-phase C18 column (50 mm × 2.5 mm, 2 μm) was used, and the MS/MS instrument was operated in the multiple reaction monitoring mode for the sensitive and selective detection of 5-hydroxymethyl-2-furaldehyde (HMF). The matrix effect and detection stability were corrected using the isotope dilution method. This method demonstrated low limit of quantification (0.3 μg L⁻¹) and excellent linearity (R² = 0.999). The recovery rates of HMF ranged from 87.5% to 101.0% in carbonated drinks and from 85.1% to 98.7% in soft drinks. The content of HMF was quantified in thirteen beverage samples, ranging from 0.2 to 14.8 mg L⁻¹. In conclusion, the VALLME coupled with the HPLC-ESI-MS/MS method is a valid and rapid technique for isotope dilution quantification of HMF in beverages.