HPLC/CE‐ESI‐TOF‐MS methods for the characterization of polyphenols in almond‐skin extracts

Abstract We have developed two rapid methods using CE and HPLC coupled to ESI‐TOF‐MS and both these methods have been compared for the separation and characterization of antioxidant phenolic compounds in almond‐skin extract. Under optimum CE‐ESI‐TOF‐MS conditions we achieved the determination of nine compounds from the polar fraction in 35 min. Furthermore, by using the HPLC‐ESI‐TOF‐MS method, a total of 23 compounds corresponding to phenolic acids and the flavonoid family were identified from almond skin in only 9 min. The sensitivity, together with mass accuracy and true isotopic pattern of TOF‐MS, allowed the identification of a broad series of known phenolic compounds present in almond‐skin extracts using HPLC and CE as separation techniques.