Food Characterization
Special focus is placed on analysis of food components contributing to sensory properties, stabilities, and health effects of food. Specific questions are for example impact of genetic background and growth environment, and processing on composition and quality of food as well as structure-function relationships of food components.
Service
Instrument time and analysis protocols available for analysis of various food components including total lipid content, fatty acid composition, molecular weight distribution and regioisomers of triacylglycerols and phospholipids, sugars and acids, phenolic compounds, protein content, and amino acid composition. Metabolomics analyses are available based on NMR and mass spectrometry.
We offer independent equipment use subject to charge for academic researchers. Contracted analytical service is also possible for different purposes.
Independent use of equipment:
- know-how of equipment use is mandatory
- short technical briefing available
- booking of equipment through contact person (see the table below)
Instruments, analyses, and contact persons
The email addresses are in form firstname.lastname@utu.fi. You can also open the contact details in a PDF.
| Analysis | Instruments | Contact persons |
| Analysis of volatile compounds | SPME-GC-MS | Annelie Damerau |
| Analysis of aroma compounds | GC-O-FID | Oskar Laaksonen |
| Total nitrogen content determination | Kjeldahl nitrogen analyser | Annelie Damerau |
| Amino acid compositional analysis | HPLC-DAD | Jukka-Pekka Suomela |
| Total lipid content determination | Automatic Soxhlet Extracter | Marika Kalpio |
| Fatty acid composition analysis | GC-FID | Marika Kalpio |
| Molecular weight and regio-isomeric analysis of triacylglycerols | (U)HPLC-MS, LC-MS/MS (triple quadrupole) | Mikael Fabritius |
| Molecular weight and regio-isomeric analysis of triacylglycerols | Direct inlet MS, MS/MS | Marika Kalpio |
| Molecular weight and regio-isomeric analysis of phospholipids | (U)HPLC-MS, LC-MS/MS (QTOF) | Mikael Fabritius |
| Analysis of chiral triacylglycerols | (U)HPLC-DAD using chiral columns | Marika Kalpio |
| Analysis of tocopherols and tocotrienols | (U)HPLC-DAD | Maaria Kortesniemi |
| Analysis of phenolic compounds | (U)HPLC-DAD, (U)HPLC-MS | Jukka-Pekka Suomela |
| Analysis of sugars and acids | GC-FID | Oskar Laaksonen |
| Analysis of Vitamin C | GC-FID | Oskar Laaksonen |
| NMR Metabolomics | NMR (joint instrument between UTU and Åbo Akademi) | Maaria Kortesniemi |
| (U)HPLC-MS Metabolomics | UHPLC-MS (QTOF) | Kati Hanhineva |
| Extraction and analysis of different lipid classes | Supercritical fluid extraction-supercritical fluid chromatography- mass spectrometry (triple quadrupole) | Marika Kalpio |
| Comprehensive targeted and nontargeted separation and analysis by ultra-high performance 2-dimensional liquid chromatography | Two-dimensional liquid chromatography with optional detectors: DAD, fluorescence detector, light scattering detector | Marika Kalpio |
| Other instruments for routine characterization | Spectrophotometers, plate readers, pH meter, analytical scales, centrifuges, tissue lysers etc. | Jukka-Pekka Suomela |