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Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) in various types of tea

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Abstract

For the analysis of the 16 PAH (EFSA-PAH), which are classified as priority for different food groups by the Scientific Committee on Food (SCF) and the Joint FAO/WHO Experts Committee on Food Additives (JECFA) in tea, a sensitive analytical Fast-GC/HRMS method was used. The sample preparation included accelerated solvent extraction (ASE) and the highly automated clean up steps, gel permeation chromatography and solid phase extraction. The analytical parameters, limit of detection (0.01–0.02 μg/kg) and limit of quantification (0.03–0.06 μg/kg), were determined. The repeatability (RSD, n = 3) of different PAH in fruit tea ranged from 0.1 to 11%. It was observed that the total contents of the 16 PAH in tea samples ranged from 14 to 2,662 μg/kg. The analysed tea samples showed an increasing presence of PAH in the following order: herbal and fruit tea (n = 7) < black tea (n = 11) < green tea (n = 11) < white tea (n = 3) < mate-tea (n = 8). The correlation coefficient (R) between BaP and the sum of the 16 EFSA-PAH was established considering the contamination amount in all the 40 tea samples analysed.

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Abbreviations

5MC:

5-Methylchrysene

ASE:

Accelerated solvent extraction

BaA:

Benzo[a]anthracene

BaP:

Benzo[a]pyrene

BbF:

Benzo[b]fluoranthene

BcL:

Benzo[c]fluorene

BgP:

Benzo[g,h,i]perylene

BjF:

Benzo[j]fluoranthene

BkF:

Benzo[k]fluoranthene

CPP:

Cyclopenta[c,d]pyrene

CHR:

Chrysene

D/A:

Dichloromethane/acetone

DeP:

Dibenzo[a,e]pyrene

DhA:

Dibenzo[a,h]anthracene

DhP:

Dibenzo[a,h]pyrene

DiP:

Dibenzo[a,i]pyrene

DlP:

Dibenzo[a,l]pyrene

EFSA:

European Food Safety Authority

EPA:

Environmental Protection Agency

GPC:

Gel permeation chromatography

HRMS:

High resolution mass spectrometer

IcP:

Indeno[1,2,3-cd]pyrene

IQR:

Interquartile range

JECFA:

Joint FAO/WHO Experts Committee on Food Additives

KOH:

Potassium hydroxide

LLE:

Liquid liquid extraction

LOD:

Limit of detection

LOQ:

Limit of quantification

Na2SO4 :

Sodium sulphate

PAH:

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons

SCF:

Scientific Committee on Food

SIM:

Selected ion monitoring

SPE:

Solid phase extraction

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Max Rubner-Institut (MRI), Federal Research Institute of Nutrition and Food, Analysis Division, E.-C.-Baumann-Str. 20, 95326, Kulmbach, Germany

    Katja Ziegenhals & Wolfgang Jira

  2. Institute of Food Chemistry, Technical University of Dresden, Dresden, Germany

    Karl Speer

Authors
  1. Katja Ziegenhals
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  2. Wolfgang Jira
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  3. Karl Speer
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Correspondence to Wolfgang Jira.

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Ziegenhals, K., Jira, W. & Speer, K. Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) in various types of tea. Eur Food Res Technol 228, 83–91 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00217-008-0909-8

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00217-008-0909-8

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