Methylene chloride has long been used in industry, academia and has been one of the primary extraction solvents for environmental applications. In recent years, the US EPA has issued several risk assessments and regulations regarding the use of methylene chloride.

Fragrance-free is an increasing trend in personal care products. Consumers gravitate towards these products due to allergies, sensitivities, medical conditions, maintaining a neutral work environment, and avoiding overpowering scents. When these products contain off-odors, they become much more apparent to the consumer since there is no other fragrance to mask them, resulting in complaints and brand damage. This study used thin film-solid phase microextraction (TF-SPME) in a sensory directed analysis (SDA) approach to extract off-odor compounds from fragrance-free, makeup-removing face wipes.

Mineral oil contaminants in food can originate from a variety of sources, from contamination of the crop environment to machine oils from harvesting and production machinery to contaminated packaging and materials that come into contact with food.
Since mineral oil-saturated hydrocarbons (MOSH) and mineral oil aromatic hydrocarbons (MOAH) pose a risk to human health, they need to be monitored in all types of food.

Contaminations in foods and beverages can cause serious health problems and are a growing concern in modern society. In recent years, contamination with mineral oil hydrocarbons shifted into public focus, and also gained attention in legislation and standardization. Mineral oil hydrocarbons, especially aromatic hydrocarbons, can pose serious health risks and include many carcinogenic compounds.

This study focuses on the automated extraction of small volumes of urine samples (< 500 μL) using disposable pipette extraction (DPX) for the comprehensive screening of pain management drugs by LC-MS/MS.
Using a GERSTEL MPS autosampler, DPX extractions of hydrolyzed urine were performed, using a reversed phase (DPX-RP-S) sorbent. The resulting eluents were diluted and analyzed by LC-MS/MS allowing rapid, “just-in-time” sample preparation for high throughput screenings, averaging an injection to injection cycle time of 7 min/sample.

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Meat substitutes are becoming increasingly important as they represent a sustainable alternative to meat products. The released flavors in the different phases (raw, fried and during the frying process) are crucial for the success of the product. The aim of this project is to identify the released flavors in these phases using dynamic headspace gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (DHS-GC-MS).
The present study examines commercially available burger patties from various manufacturers.

Highlights

DIN 38407-27 is a German standard method for the examination of water, wastewater and sludge for the determination of selected phenols in groundwater and leachate, aqueous eluates and percolates [1].
After derivatization of the analytes with acetic anhydride to their corresponding acetates and subsequent liquid-liquid extraction, the determination is carried out using gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC-MS).
For this application liquid-liquid extraction has been replaced with stir bar sorptive extraction (SBSE) using the GERSTEL Twister.

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Shisha tobacco is a moist tobacco mix that is smoked in a type of waterpipe known as “hookah” or “shisha.” It is made by fermenting tobacco with molasses, glycerine and fruit essence, producing a tough, pliable mixture challenging to analyze for flavor compounds.
Thoroughly determining the VOCs and semi-VOCs in the final product is vital for ensuring quality control, batch consistency and successful product development studies.

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To ensure a sustainable material cycle, used plastic materials undergo a recycling process. These recyclate pellets are often made of used containers, and odor emissions occur repeatedly during the recycling process, making the re-use of the plastic difficult, if not impossible.
Two solvent-free analysis techniques are used to determine the composition of such odors and thus to trace the source. These are thermal desorption with prior air sampling and direct thermal extraction of the plastic.

Highlights

The Maillard reaction plays a crucial role in shaping the appearance, aroma, and taste of cooked meat, with the first two factors driving initial appeal. Therefore, effectively managing the Maillard reaction is essential for gaining deeper analytical insights that support food research and development. This study aims to demonstrate the automation of handling chilled meat samples and cooking them prior to analyte extraction with dynamic headspace and chromatographic analysis.