HPLC-UV Analysis of Beer for HMF using 2 mm I.D. Chromolith^® RP-18e Column

General description

Hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF) is produced through the thermal decomposition of carbohydrates or sugars. It can be detected in numerous heat-processed food and beverage samples. HMF is believed to adversely affect the health of both animals and humans; hence, official entities such as the European Union are increasingly focused on this issue, establishing limit values for honey, for instance. In beer, low HMF levels signify freshness and a natural finish, but prolonged storage or exposure to heat results in elevated HMF levels due to the decomposition of fructose.

Analysis Note

This application focusses on the analysis of HMF in a beer sample (smoke beer shown, dark beer, and dark wheat beer were also investigated) by HPLC with UV detection using a 2 mm I.D. monolithic silica column, the Chromolith^® HighResolution RP-18 endcapped. Because of the bimodal pores structure of the Chromolith^® column and the resulting matrix tolerance, sample preparation could be kept very simple. The smoke beer was just degassed in an ultrasonic bath for 1 h and then spiked at 20 mg/L with hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF). An external calibration curve showed good linearity (R²: 1.0000) in the investigated concentration range of 0.65-41.2 mg/L, and the derived LOD and LOQ were 0.15 and 0.44 mg/L, respectively. The spiked sample showed a 95.6% recovery. For other beer samples, such as dark beer and dark wheat beer, the spike recoveries were 96.0% and 87.8%.

Other Notes

APP_724

Legal Information

Chromolith is a registered trademark of Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany