ISO 22959:2009 specifies a high performance liquid chromatographic (HPLC) procedure for the determination of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in edible fats and oils.
The method has been validated for coconut, olive, sunflower, and soybean oil, and is possibly applicable to other oils, dependent on the determination of appropriate parameters.
The lowest level of quantification for the PAHs is 0,1 g/kg. The lowest possible amount of each PAH which can be distinguished from the baseline noise has not been determined. The validated concentration range of the method is 0,1 g/kg to 3,5 g/kg for each individual PAH. For samples containing (light) PAH contents > 3,5 g/kg, dilution to bring the contents into the validated range is possible. It is also possible to adjust the range of the calibration curves. However, ranges exceeding 3,5 g/kg have not been validated.
PAHs which can be determined by this method are: anthracene, phenanthrene, fluoranthene, pyrene, chrysene, benzo[a]anthracene, benzo[e]pyrene, benzo[a]pyrene, perylene, benzo[ghi]perylene, anthanthrene, dibenzo[a,h]anthracene, coronene, indeno[1,2,3-cd]pyrene, benzo[a]fluoranthene, benzo[b]fluoranthene, benzo[k]fluoranthene.