Direct infusion electrospray ionisation mass spectrometry applied in the detection of adulteration of coconut oil with palm kernel oil

Coconut oil has properties that are beneficial to human health. It assists in reducing total cholesterol, triacylglycerol (TAG), phospholipids, low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol, and very low-density lipoprotein (VLDL) cholesterol in serum and tissues. So its production, and consequently consumption, have increased in recent years. However, it has been a target for intentional adulteration with lower priced oils and fats, such as soybean oil and palm kernel oil (PKO). Coconut oil (CO) and PKO have similar chemical and physical characteristics that make it difficult to verify adulteration of CO with PKO. This study demonstrates a simple, sensitive, and fast technique that uses direct infusion electrospray ionisation mass spectrometry (ESI-MS) in conjunction with principal component analysis (PCA), in order to detect CO adulterated with PKO. Among the seven commercial coconut oil samples analysed, three were adulterated with PKO. Therefore, the suggested direct infusion ESI-MS method can be used in routine analysis to guarantee the quality of coconut oil.