Off-line LC-GCxGC-MS: A Powerful Approach for Highly Detailed Analysis of Essential Oils

The present contribution is focused on the off-line combination of high performance liquid chromatography and comprehensive two-dimensional gas chromatography-quadrupole mass spectrometry (GCxGC-quadMS), and its application to the detailed qualitative analysis of orange essential oil. Specifically, a silica column was exploited for the separation of the essential oil constituents in two groups, namely hydrocarbon and oxygenated compounds. After, each HPLC-fraction was reduced in volume, and then subjected to cryogenically-modulated GCxGC-quadMS analysis.