Direct determination of phenolic compounds and phospholipids in virgin olive oil by micellar liquid chromatography

A simple HPLC method is reported for fast separation and determination of phenolic compounds (tyrosol, caffeic acid, p-coumaric acid and oleuropeina) and phospholipids (phosphatidylethanolamine and phosphatidylcholine) in virgin olive oil samples. The samples were diluted with 2-propanol and injected into the column directly without previous extraction. Samples with an olive oil content of up to 65% were injected without any problems. The analytes were separated on a C-18 column by a micellar mobile phase containing 0.07 M SDS and 2.5% 2-propanol at pH 3, and were detected at 210 nm. Linear calibration curves [r2 > 0.997] were obtained with detection limits ranging from 0.052 to 0.16 μg/g and 1 to 8.6% repeatability for the phenolic compounds. Several virgin olive oil samples were analysed and the recovery values were around 110%.