A method for the determination of volatile N-nitrosamines in food by HS-SPME-GC-TEA

A method for the determination of volatile nitrosamines in sausages was developed using headspace sampling by solid-phase microextraction and gas chromatography with thermal energy analyzer detection (HS-SPME-GC-TEA). Two fused silica fibers, one coated with polydimethylsiloxane-divinylbenzene (PDMS-DVB) and another with poliacrylate (PA) were evaluated. A factorial fractional design was employed in order to evaluate the influence of the equilibrium time, ionic strength, extraction time and temperature for the extraction of N-nitrosodimethylamine, N-nitrosodiethylamine, N-nitrosopiperidine and N-nitrosopyrrolidine in sausages. The method was validated and applied for the determination of nitrosamines in sausages. The described method is simple, rapid, with adequate accuracy, selectivity, sensitivity and precision.