Comparative analysis of the organic acid content of vinegar by capillary electrophoresis and ion-exclusion chromatography with conductimetric detection

Summary Ion-exclusion chromatography (IEC) and capillary electrophoresis (CE) have been compared for determination of organic acids in samples of Sherry wine vinegar. The accuracy of each technique was evaluated by use of the standard addition method. There were no differences between the techniques at a significance level of 5%, except for determination of malic acid by CE. Both analytical methods were used to analyse sixteen samples of Sherry wine vinegar supplied by different producers. The regression coefficients (r ²) for analysis by IEC and CE exceeded 0.94 for all acids. Results from both methods were in good agreement and the methods are sufficiently selective and sensitive to be applied directly to sherry wine vinegars.