Determination of aliphatic organic acids by high-performance liquid chromatography with pulsed electrochemical detection

A new ion exclusion HPLC procedure accomplished with a pulsed electrochemical detection for the determination of several common aliphatic acids is described. A triple-step waveform of the applied potentials, based on the formation/inhibition of PtOH species on the electrode surface, is successfully used for sensitive detection of several aliphatic acids in flowing systems avoiding pre- or postcolumn derivatization and/or cleanup procedures. Under optimal chromatographic conditions (i.e., 50 mM HCIO4) the proposed method allowed detection limits between 0.5 and 7 muM for all investigated acids, and the dynamic linear range spanned generally over 1 or 2 orders of magnitude. Determination of citric, malic, tartaric, lactic, formic, and acetic acids in several foods and beverages was performed, in similar to15 min, without the necessity of any sample pretreatment.