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China Surfactant Detergent & Cosmetics ›› 2026, Vol. 56 ›› Issue (6): 811-820.doi: 10.3969/j.issn.2097-2806.2026.06.014

• Analytical methods and testing • Previous Articles     Next Articles

Authenticity identification of cosmetics based on headspace-gas chromatography-ion mobility spectrometry and headspace-gas chromatography-mass spectrometry technologies

Liqiong Gao,Guofang Shen*(),Wei Zhang,Xiuxiu Wang,Yue Xu,Xia Wang   

  1. Hangzhou Institute for Food and Drug Control, Hangzhou, Zhejiang 310023, China
  • Received:2025-09-02 Revised:2026-06-02 Online:2026-06-22 Published:2026-07-22
  • Contact: *E-mail: shengf@126.com

Abstract:

Focusing on toner, lotion and cream matrices, the fingerprints of volatile organic compounds were constructed to characterize the differences among various cosmetics, and achieve accurate authenticity identification. A combined approach utilizing headspace-gas chromatography-ion mobility spectrometry (HS-GC-IMS) and headspace-gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (HS-GC-MS) technologies was used to detect differences between genuine and counterfeit cosmetics. The HS-GC-IMS spectra were processed using the built-in NIST and IMS databases to reveal 91, 37, and 37 active ingredients, respectively, from which 83, 30, and 23 compounds are identified. The Gallery Plot plugin was used for fingerprint analysis; the similarity results show that the similarities for genuine products are greater than 85%, 93%, and 91%, respectively, while those for the counterfeit products are less than 64%, 31%, and 43%, respectively. Furthermore, HS-GC-IMS data were analyzed using the traditional Chinese medicine chromatographic fingerprint similarity evaluation system based on total ion chromatogram data. The similarity between genuine products ranged from 0.968 to 0.999, while those between counterfeit products range from 0.003 to 0.849. Both methods proved highly effective in distinguishing between genuine and counterfeit cosmetics. Therefore, the combination of HS-GC-MS and HS-GC-IMS technologies can be successfully applied to the comparative analysis of organic volatile components in genuine and counterfeit cosmetics, enabling rapid and accurate authentication, and providing scientific basis for cosmetic authenticity authentication studies.

Key words: cosmetics, headspace-gas chromatography-ion mobility spectrometry, headspace-gas chromatography-mass spectrometry, volatile organic compounds, authenticity identification

CLC Number: 

  • TQ658