Application of elemental analysis via energy dispersive x-ray fluorescence (ED-XRF) for the authentication of Maltese extra virgin olive oil

Abstract

Elemental analysis using energy-dispersive X-ray fluorescence on extra virgin olive oils and seed oils revealed the presence of two major concentration related clusters, one containing elements of pedological origin, whilst the other consisted of heavy metals. Seed oils were found to contain a higher concentration of titanium when compared to extra virgin olive oils, whilst extra virgin olive oils derived from the Maltese Islands had a significantly higher concentration of barium and phosphorus on using the Kruskal–Wallis one-way ANOVA (p-value < 0.05 for both elements). Application of stepwise linear canonical discriminate analysis proved to be highly superior to PCA, as it was able to distinguish between seed oils from extra virgin olive oils and distinguish between foreign and locally produced extra virgin olive oils.