ABSTRACT
This chapter provides an overview of the operational aspects of ion trap gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS) for the purpose of providing insight into its present and potential applications for food aroma analysis. Mass spectrometry (MS) simultaneously provides both qualitative and quantitative information and, thus, is extremely useful for analyses of food aroma samples containing many compounds of interest. The higher flow rates used with large-bore capillary and packed columns are incompatible with direct interface approaches. For these applications, an effluent splitter can be used to handle the larger pressure differentials characteristic of higher-flow GC systems. The ability of the ion trap to manipulate the time domain of an MS analysis provides a unique opportunity to capitalize on the inherent ion chemistries for some aroma compounds. Tandem mass spectrometry can be used not only to overcome high background problems, but also to provide additional dimensions of spectral selectivity that are useful for differentiation between compounds with similar fragmentation patterns.
