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Updated: Sep 26, 2025

Using Capillary Electrophoresis to Quantify Organic Acids from Plant Tissue: A Test Case Examining Coffea arabica Seeds
Published on: November 12, 2016
The potential of accelerator-based techniques as an analytical tool for forensics: The case of coffee
P Chytry1, G M S Souza2, R Debastiani3
1LII - Ion Implantation Laboratory, Institute of Physics, Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS), Av Bento Gonçalves 9500, CP 15051, CEP 91501-970 Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil; Graduate Program on Materials Science, Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS), Av Bento Gonçalves 9500, CEP 91501-970 Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil.
Abstract:
We discuss how different accelerator-based techniques can be employed synergistically as a powerful analytical tool for forensic studies of foodstuff. Brazilian and Jamaican coffees were chosen as a showcase due to its popularity and potential risk of adulteration and/or falsification. Comprehensive characterization of major and trace elements, age since production and compound contents were achieved using different techniques, including PIXE (Particle-Induced X-ray Emission), FTIR (Fourier Transform Infrared), and AMS-14C (Accelerator Mass Spectrometry - Radiocarbon Analysis). While PIXE provides information on the elements present in the samples, FTIR probes the types of compounds through their vibrational spectra. Finally, AMS-14C is capable of dating organic samples regarding their harvesting time. Five different laboratories from research institutions around the world took part in the experiments. The integration of the results obtained with different techniques provided multifaceted perspectives on the coffee under study, thus allowing a direct assessment of the material for forensic purposes such as authentication, determination of provenance, and combat counterfeiting.
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