Calorimetry for edible oil authentication

Development of studies about melting and freezing curves of some edible oils has demonstrated the possibility of oil authentication by calorimetric techniques. Applications of DSC to test nature, quality and origin of edible oils are available in literature, but a correlation between calorimetric results and methods for oil quality control is not well established. In this work, the problem of obtaining reproducible DSC thermograms has been solved by defining precise protocols for experiment execution. These have been applied to olive oil, the most important edible oil, particularly in Italy where production and consumption have high economical relevance. The performance of these protocols is described, discussed and valued, and it is shown how they are simple, quick and not expensive. This technique can be useful in quality, origin, fraud, storage and also in conformity tests for the assignment of the Protected Designation of Origin label.