NMR determination of free fatty acids in vegetable oils

The identification and quantification of free fatty acids (FFA) in edible and non-edible vegetable oils, including waste cooking oils, is a crucial index to assess their quality and drives their use in different application fields. NMR spectroscopy represents an alternative tool to conventional methods for the determination of FFA content, providing us with interesting advantages. Here the approaches reported in the literature based on 1H, 13C and 31P NMR are illustrated and compared, highlighting the pros and cons of the suggested strategies.