Simultaneous and Simple Determination of Saccharin and Acesulfame K in Foods by GC-NPD

A rapid and simple method for the simultaneous determination of saccharin (SA) and acesulfame K (AK) in foods by GC-NPD was developed. A good extraction rate was obtained by using ethyl acetate as an extraction solvent and high sensitivity was obtained by using GC-NPD. Interfering substances were removed or reduced effectively by clean-up using an acidic alumina cartridge column. The detection limit was 5 ppm in samples, and SA and AK were confirmed by GC/MS. The proposed method was applied to 89 samples of imported foods, such as soft drinks, instant cocoa and confectionery.