Publications by authors named "Joeri Vercammen"

Background: Growing research on lignin depolymerization to functionalized bio-aromatics has necessitated dedicated analysis techniques. However, immense variability in molecular weight and functional groups of the depolymerization products impedes fast analysis of a large number of samples while remaining in-depth enough for catalyst screening or reaction condition optimization. While GPC-HPLC-UV/VIS has been a promising technique, up until now, the information it provides is largely qualitative.

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Selected ion flow tube-mass spectrometry (SIFT-MS) is an analytical technique for volatile detection and quantification. SIFT-MS can be applied in a "white box" approach, measuring concentrations of target compounds, or as a "black box" fingerprinting technique, scanning all product ions during a full scan. Combining SIFT-MS full scan data acquired from multibatches or large-scale experiments remains problematic due to signal fluctuation over time.

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Recognized for its nutritional and therapeutic use, extra-virgin Argan Oil (EVAO) is frequently adulterated. Selected-Ion Flow-Tube Mass Spectrometry (SIFT-MS) spectra were applied to quantify adulterants (i.e.

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Lignin valorization and particularly its depolymerization into bio-aromatics, has emerged as an important research topic within green chemistry. However, screening of catalysts and reaction conditions within this field is strongly constrained by the lack of analytical techniques that allow for fast and detailed mapping of the product pools. This analytical gap results from the inherent product pool complexity and the focus of the state-of-the-art on monomers and dimers, overlooking the larger oligomers.

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Selected-Ion Flow-Tube Mass Spectrometry (SIFT-MS) has been applied in a clinical context as diagnostic tool for breath samples using target biomarkers. Exhaled breath sampling is non-invasive and therefore much more patient friendly compared to bronchoscopy, which is the golden standard for evaluating airway inflammation. In the actual pilot study, 55 exhaled breath samples of children with asthma, cystic-fibrosis and healthy individuals were included.

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The fermentation of dietary fibre (DF) leads to the production of bioactive metabolites, the most volatile ones being excreted in the breath. The aim of this study was to analyze the profile of exhaled breath volatile metabolites (BVM) and gastrointestinal symptoms in healthy volunteers after a single ingestion of maltodextrin (placebo) versus chitin-glucan (CG), an insoluble DF previously shown to be fermented into short-chain fatty acids (SCFA) by the human microbiota in vitro. Maltodextrin (4.

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Chronic inflammatory lung diseases impact more than 300 million of people worldwide. Because they are not curable, these diseases have a high impact on both the quality of life of patients and the healthcare budget. The stability of patient condition relies mostly on constant treatment adaptation and lung function monitoring.

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Recently, migration of mineral oil components from food contact materials into various foods has been reported. The analysis of mineral oil in food is complicated since it consists of mineral oil saturated hydrocarbons (MOSH) comprising a complex mixture of linear, branched and cyclic compounds and variable amounts of mineral oil aromatic hydrocarbons (MOAH), mainly alkylated. Both MOSH and MOAH form 'humps' of unresolved peaks in the chromatograms with the same range of volatility.

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This study investigated the effectiveness of SIFT-MS versus chemical profiling, both coupled to multivariate data analysis, to classify 95 Extra Virgin Argan Oils (EVAO), originating from five Moroccan Argan forest locations. The full scan option of SIFT-MS, is suitable to indicate the geographic origin of EVAO based on the fingerprints obtained using the three chemical ionization precursors (HO, NO and O). The chemical profiling (including acidity, peroxide value, spectrophotometric indices, fatty acids, tocopherols- and sterols composition) was also used for classification.

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Selected Ion flow tube mass spectrometry (SIFT-MS) in combination with chemometrics was used to authenticate the geographical origin of Mediterranean virgin olive oils (VOOs) produced under geographical origin labels. In particular, 130 oil samples from six different Mediterranean regions (Kalamata (Greece); Toscana (Italy); Meknès and Tyout (Morocco); and Priego de Córdoba and Baena (Spain)) were considered. The headspace volatile fingerprints were measured by SIFT-MS in full scan with HO, NO and O as precursor ions and the results were subjected to chemometric treatments.

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Because of animal welfare issues, the voluntary ban on surgical castration of male piglets, starting January 2018 was announced in a European Treaty. One viable alternative is the fattening of entire male pigs. However, this can cause negative consumer reactions due to the occurrence of boar taint and possibly lead to severe economic losses in pig husbandry.

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Selected ion flow tube-mass spectrometry (SIFT-MS) has recently gained interest as an alternative method to traditional GC-MS for the detection of targeted volatile sample compounds, due to its ease of use, its speed and sensitivity, and its potential for real-time quantification. The feasibility of this technique was demonstrated using the case of the production of ethanol during sourdough fermentation. The potential of SIFT-MS as an online monitoring device for food fermentations was further demonstrated by the detection of acetoin in certain sourdough fermentations.

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Thermochemical conversion processes play a crucial role in all routes from fossil and renewable resources to base chemicals, fuels and energy. Hence, a fundamental understanding of these chemical processes can help to resolve the upcoming challenges of our society. A bench scale pyrolysis set-up has been used to study the thermochemical conversion of rapeseed oil methyl ester (RME), i.

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This paper discusses the first setup for on-line qualitative and quantitative comprehensive two-dimensional gas chromatography (GC × GC) of complex hydrocarbon mixtures. A built-in 4-port 2-way valve allows switching between flame ionization detection (FID) and time-of-flight mass spectrometry (TOF-MS) between runs, without the need to cool down and vent the MS. Proper selection of GC carrier gas flow rates enables maximal agreement between the obtained chromatograms in both configurations.

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The increasing need to routinely analyse phenolic hydrocarbons in aqueous samples was addressed by the development and implementation of a state-of-the-art, though relatively straightforward, analytical procedure. The proposed method is based on acetic anhydride derivatisation of the native phenols, liquid-liquid extraction of the corresponding phenyl acetate esters and subsequent analysis by GC-MS. The key feature and main strength of the method is located at the injection step which applies 'at-once' large volume injection with a programmable temperature vaporizer (PTV)-type injector.

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