LAUSR

Headspace technology is a sampling method of a gas, which has been previously in contact with a liquid or a solid matrix from which volatiles were released into the gaseous phase. It is generally coupled to a subsequent gas chromatography analysis. The headspace analysis can be carried out either as a one-step extraction (static or equilibrium headspace) or as a continuous extraction (dynamic headspace). The static headspace gas chromatography (SH-GC) is gaining an increasing interest for the study of cyclodextrin (CD) inclusion complexes with volatile compounds. CDs are natural supermolecular hosts able to encapsulate volatile compounds and improve their functionalities (e.g. solubility, stability, retention, controlled release). Herein, the application of the SH-GC in the CD field will be reviewed. This paper will focus on the characterization of the inclusion complexes via the SH-GC, mainly aiming at the determination of formation constant (Kf) and encapsulation efficiency (EE%) values. Moreover, it will review the application of the SH-GC to monitor the properties of volatile compounds upon encapsulation (e.g. retention, controlled release).