Determination of Glucovanillin and Vanillin in Cured Vanilla Pods

Abstract

Glucovanillin purified from cured vanilla beans and commercial vanillin were used to develop a reversed-phase HPLC method that enables the separation, identification, and quantification of both glucovanillin and vanillin extracted from cured Java and Bourbon vanilla beans. The HPLC procedure was used to evaluate the potential of various methods for the simultaneous extraction of glucovanillin and vanillin from cured beans. Satisfactory results were obtained for glucovanillin extracted with a 24-h Soxhlet extraction in 47.5% ethanol and for vanillin with a 24-h extraction by maceration in 47.5% ethanol or 80% methanol. None of the tested methods correctly met the requirement for a quantitative and simultaneous extraction of both compounds. The slight underestimation of vanillin content by Soxhlet extraction could probably be overcome by modifying the extraction parameters.