Retronasal Aroma Analysis of Rice Crackers
Purpose
A taste-comparison of rice crackers was conducted using a ChemZo, multipurpose ion source.
Methods
| Ion Source | ChemZo (BioChromato) |
| Mass Spectrometer | compact QTOF (Bruker) |
| Measurement Method | 4g of Company A’s rice crackers ('Soy Sauce', 'Plum and Shiso' flavors) 4g of Company B’s rice crackers ('Soy Sauce', 'Plum and Shiso' flavors) After consumption of each, exhaled breath was measured for 1 minute. |
| Data Processing | Aromatic components were extracted from the mass spectrum using Retronasal Plus and Data Analysis software. Retronasal Plus was used to check whether distinctive aromatic components could be detected based on the differences between Company A and B’s rice crackers and the flavor variations. |
Results
The plum- and shiso-flavored rice crackers also has a soy sauce base; therefore, the chromatogram of aromatic components unique to the plum and shiso flavor is shown.
As shown in Fig. 1, m/z = 133.1014 was detected in both Company A and B products with similar intensity and relatively long persistence. On the other hand, as indicated in Fig. 2, m/z = 117.0237 was detected only in Company A’s plum and shiso flavor, with a shorter persistence time.
ChemZo enables real-time measurements, allowing monitoring of changes in aromatic components during swallowing. By utilizing the dedicated software Retronasal Plus, m/z values that exhibit changes before and after swallowing can be automatically extracted, even without prior knowledge of which m/z values to monitor.
