Rapid Analysis of 27 Volatile Sulfur Compounds in Wine by Headspace Solid-Phase Microextraction Gas Chromatography Tandem Mass Spectrometry

Volatile sulfur-containing compounds (VSCs) play an important role in wine aroma conferring at high concentrations unpleasant odors but also participating positively at low concentration. A large number of VSCs are formed at different stages of winemaking and storage. To monitor this phenomenon, a HS-SPME-GC-MS/MS method has been developed. The method is proposed in order to quantify 27 different sulfur-containing compounds. SPME extraction was performed using a carboxen-polydimethylsiloxane (CAR-PDMS) fiber, which resulted the most effective fiber coating. Time and temperature extraction conditions were optimized using response surface methodology. The selectivity and sensitivity of the method were considerably increased using triple-quadrupole in multiple reaction monitoring (MRM) mode. The number of VSCs analyzed in a single run was higher than in any other method previously reported using single-quadrupole MS or other detectors. The overall process was successfully applied to identify and quantify sulfur compounds both in white and red wines.