Table 2 Advantages and disadvantages of various analytical methods for fatty acid analysis
From: Assessing diatom-mediated fatty acids in intertidal biofilm: a new conservation concern
Method | Advantages | Disadvantages |
|---|---|---|
Gas chromatography flameâionization detection (GC/FID) (Tang and Row 2013; Fisk et al. 2014; Schnurr et al. 2019, 2020) | Established for mudflat FA analysis Cost-effective | Extensive sample prep and derivatization Destructive Insensitive Low specificity Does not provide structural information |
Gas chromatography mass spectrometry (GC/MS) (Tang and Row 2013; Fisk et al. 2014; Bergamino et al. 2014) | Established for mudflat FA analysis Provides structural information | Extensive sample prep and derivatization required |
Liquid chromatography mass spectrometry (LC/MS) (Brondz 2002; Schlotterbeck et al. 2018) | Limited sample preparation required Provides structural information Sensitive | Less established in mudflat FA analysis Expensive |
Liquid chromatography quadrupole time-of-flight (LC/QTOF) (Molina-Calle et al. 2017; Schlotterbeck et al. 2018) | Limited sample preparation Provides structural information High resolution High mass accuracy | Less established in mudflat FA analysis Expensive |
Fourier transform infrared (FT/IR) spectroscopy (Karunathilaka et al. 2017; Aryee et al. 2009; Gieroba et al. 2020) | Rapid Non-destructive | Spectra can be distorted by water Provides limited data compared to other methods |