Comparison of three extraction methods, DMU-SPME, SAFE, and SDE, for the analysis of flavor compounds in soy sauce

The dual mode unity solid-phase microextraction (DMU-SPME) was evaluated against traditional solvent-based methods, including solvent-assisted flavor evaporation (SAFE) and simultaneous distillation extraction (SDE), to explore its potential as an alternative. Compared to SAFE and SDE, DMU-SPME is a green extraction technology for volatile organic compounds. The results demonstrated that DMU-SPME significantly outperformed both SAFE and SDE in extracting medium-volatility compounds (retention time of 20–40 min), identifying 55 unique volatiles. With the exception of hydrocarbons, DMU-SPME exhibited superior extraction efficiency and significantly better stability compared to both SAFE and SDE methods. Thus, DMU-SPME proves to be a promising alternative for the comprehensive extraction of volatile organic compounds.