HEADSPACE ANALYSIS WITH LARGE-SAMPLE VOLUMES - INFLUENCE OF SAMPLING DEVICE VOLUME, ANALYTE CONCENTRATION AND SAMPLE MATRIX

In three series of experiments the factors influencing headspace gas chromatography (HSGC) with large sample volumes were investigated. The main factors studied were sampling device volume and interactions between the substances and between the volatiles and the sample matrix. It could be shown that variation in any of these factors causes a dramatic change in the resulting headspace composition. The results of these experiments are compared, and the reasons for the different behaviour of the substances are discussed. It is demonstrated that the mechanisms of interaction are complicated and difficult to estimate, especially in complex samples such as food flavours.