Headspace and Solid-Phase Microextraction Methods for the Identification of Volatile Flavor Compounds in Citrus Fruits

Analysis of volatiles using headspace (HS) is a fast, simple and sensitive method, which does not alter the original volatile chemical composition. Headspace solid-phase micro-extraction (HS-SPME) is also commonly used for analysis of volatiles in wide range of samples from food, soil, air and water. SPME is used by either immersing the fiber in the sample or by placing the fiber in headspace of the sample. Both the methods are convenient for sample preparation, fast, sensitive, reproducible, solventless, and prevent the degradation of aroma / volatile compounds during heating at higher temperature. In addition to clevenger distillation and solvent extraction techniques, HS and HS-SPME methods are gaining popularity due to several advantages. Citrus fruits are commonly consumed as fresh and processed juice due to their appealing flavor, aroma and health benefits. Therefore, citrus volatile oils have been widely used for their flavor and aroma and are commonly isolated using distillation techniques. However low boiling volatiles are degraded due to distillation and aroma molecules form artifacts. To overcome such challenges, HS and HS-SPME methods are most commonly used in recent years.