Combinatorial Synthesis and Sensorial Properties of 21 Mercapto Esters

The aim of this work was to determine the chromatographic and sensorial properties of 21 synthetic mercapto acetates, among which two3-mercaptohexyl-acetate and 3-methyl-3-mercaptobutyl-acetatehave been previously detected in foods, especially passion fruit and wine. Combinatorial chemistry was used to synthesize them from α,β-unsaturated ketones and aldehydes in a very short time. GC-SCD, GC-MS, and GC−olfactometry proved to be very helpful techniques for analyzing them individually in the reaction mixture obtained. Compared to other polyfunctional thiols, mercapto esters show relatively high BE-GC-LoADS values (best estimate−gas chromatography−lowest amount detected by sniffing), with very diverse descriptors. Keywords: Combinatorial chemistry; polyfunctional thiols; flavors; BE-GC-LoADS; sulfur compounds