Agenda

Monday

09.20 – 10.10 Registration

10.10 - 10.30 Coffee break

10.30 – 11.20 Registration and introduction Nose coordinator, school director
11.20 – 12.10 Basics on human perceptions Huguette Nicod, ADRIANT  Download

12.30 Lunch time

17.40 - 18.00 Coffee break

18.00 – 18.50 Basics on sensory tests Huguette Nicod, ADRIANT  Download
18.50 – 19.40 Profile tests: panelists selection and training, principle Huguette Nicod, ADRIANT  Download

20.00 Dinner

Tuesday

08.30 – 09.20 Flavor release, matrix effects # 1 Rob Vreeker, Unilever  Download
09.20 – 10.10 Flavor release, matrix effects # 2 Rob Vreeker, Unilever  Download

10.10 - 10.30 Coffee break

10.30 – 11.20 Thermodynamics and extraction Rob Vreeker, Unilever  Download
11.20 – 12.10 Enrichment techniques # 1 Christophe Pérès, RIC  Download

12.30 Lunch time

17.40 - 18.00 Coffee break

18.00 – 18.50 Enrichment techniques # 2 Christophe Pérès, RIC  Download
18.50 – 19.40 Enrichment techniques # 3 Christophe Pérès, RIC  Download

20.00 Dinner

Wednesday

08.30 – 09.20 Analytical separative instruments # 1 Markus Lübke, Aromalyse  Download
09.20 – 10.10 Analytical separative instruments, liquid chromatography Markus Lübke, Aromalyse  Download

10.10 - 10.30 Coffee break

10.30 – 11.20 Analytical separative instruments, detectors Markus Lübke, Aromalyse  Download
11.20 – 12.10 Sample representativity Sophie Le Guen  Download

12.30 Lunch time

17.40 - 18.00 Coffee break

18.00 – 18.50 Special samples: fat, edible oils Ramon Aparicio, Instituto Grassa  Download
18.50 – 19.40 Special samples: wines and spirits Thomas Schäfer, Universidade Nova de Lisboa  Download

20.30 Social dinner

Thursday

08.30 – 09.20 Human senses cross modalities # 1 Charles Spence, Oxford university  Download
09.20 – 10.10 Human senses cross modalities # 2 Charles Spence, Oxford university  Download

10.10 - 10.30 Coffee break

11.20 – 12.10 Basics on taste and tasty compounds # 1 Annick Faurion, University Jussieu
10.30 – 11.20 Basics on taste and tasty compounds # 2 Annick Faurion, University Jussieu

12.30 Lunch time

13.30– 17.30 Optional outdoor activity

17.40 - 18.00 Coffee break

18.00 – 18.50 Gas Chromatography – Olfactometry # 1 Saskia Van Ruth, University Cork  Download
18.50 – 19.40 Gas Chromatography – Olfactometry # 2 Saskia Van Ruth, University Cork  Download

20.00 Dinner

Friday

08.30 – 09.20 Sensory : raw or processed data? Frédéric Brochet, Ampelidae  Download
09.20 – 10.10 Data and senses fusion, Crispymeter Piero Visani, Nestec  Download

10.10 - 10.30 Coffee break

10.30 – 11.20 Analysis of some success and failures applications Piero Visani, Nestec  Download
11.20 – 12.10 "E-Noses and E-Tongues", precision versus time Panel discussion

12.30 End of the course

Lectures

The 24 lectures covered topics on the basics on volatile analysis, and how it can be related to the design or use of an e-nose. As the main focus of the NOSE II Short Courses is basics and not the latest research, fundamental concepts of science and technology were covered.

The programme was designed to equilibrate the lectures and give an actual feedback to the participants. Scientists coming from industry gave 15 lectures, when academic lecturers gave 9 lectures.

In the following, the lectures are explained in more detail, grouped by topics:

• Basics on human perceptions and sensory metrology: As the first lecturer, Huguette Nicod was introducing the human perceptions and the sensory evaluation. The five human senses were detailed, together with their characteristics in terms of sensitivity and inter-individual differences. The sensory metrology was presented, considering the Human as an instrument. The second lecture provided basics on sensory tests with the definition of the different tests, either analytic or hedonic with their advantages and drawback depending on the final goal. In the third lecture, panelist selection and training was discussed together with the group monitoring, which is close to the drift compensation for e-noses.
• Sensory: raw or processed data? Frédéric Brochet presented a complement on the sensory topic: the difference between sensations and perceptions was explained. Flavour, taste, texture, noise are conscious perceptive representations and not only sensations. Furthermore, "What is conscious is expressed through language". That means that dealing with sensory, we can only access the brain processed data and not the "sensor" signal. It can then understanding what is happening in the subject's brain is a real challenge. Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging was compared with Textual analysis for a better understanding of how the cross-influences between senses may change the final results.
• Flavor release, matrix effects: This analytical section was teach by Rob Vreeker who gave three lectures. First, the topic was introduced: Flavour analysis, flavour evaluation and perception, flavour application and informatics, physics of flavour and flavour generation, which considered flavour as a key consumer attribute for industry, and developed it as an integral part of the product's composition and process. In the first lecture, importance of physics in flavour principles, effect of ingredients; equilibrium state effects. Some items were of particular interest for the e-noses community: as how fast is aroma release from a solvent or how long does it take to reach equilibrium in a headspace vial? The second lecture concerned the dynamics of flavour release: static diffusion, convective diffusion and transport process to the olfactory epithelium. Here physical parameters were introduced: diffusion coefficients, partition coefficients and convection and flow conditions together with the penetration theory. They were then compared to the data that can be extracted for the time-intensity panel response. The last lecture focused on the mechanisms of mass transfers: sorption-diffusion-permeation. The conclusion was: If condition change; signal (perception) changes, both for human and instrumental.
• Analytical separative instruments: Markus Lübke who gave three lectures. He first explained the interest of using separation techniques instead of global detection. After a general introduction to chromatography, gas and liquid chromatography together with pre-separation and detection were detailled. Gas chromatography is commonly used for e-nose tentative correlation when Liquid chromatography is use with the same aim for e-tongue. Mass and Ion Mobility spectrometry was detailled as detection means. Fast-GC was also presented as a competitor for e-noses.
• Enrichment techniques: Christophe Pérès gave three lectures on new trends in instrumentation completed basic principles on sample enrichment. As the cost per analysis must be ever lower, the sampling has to be fast and powerful. Examples of sampling techniques were presented for environmental analysis, with ultra-trace sensitivity. Ad- and ab-sorption techniques were introduced with their pro and cons for volatile, opening alternate ways for better sensitivity and selectivity in e-noses. In the second lecture, static headspace was opposed to dynamic one and a history of sorptive techniques was presented, with the support of examples both from pollution and food domains. In the last lecture, the solid samples were also considered and the MS-based e-noses functioning was given at the end.
• Sample representativity Sophie Le Guen. Any kind of extraction or enrichment method introduces a distortion of the sample compared to the initial product. It is then important to take into account the representativeness of the different extracts compared to the original product. This will allow choosing the good technique and/or operational conditions which avoid both bad recoveries of some compounds and the formation of new compounds (artifacts). Direct olfactometry was presented as the current technique for sensory tests on extracts.
• Gas Chromatography - Olfactometry, two lectures from Saskia Van Ruth. This technique which represents also a hyphenation of sensory and instrumental analysis. Only a small fraction of the large number of volatiles contribute to the odour and aroma of specific foods. Therefore, distinction between odour active compounds and the whole range of volatiles present is an important task in flavour analysis. Many of the ‘chemical' detectors are not as sensitive as the human nose for many odour active compounds, which occur at very low concentrations; their sensory relevance is due to low odour thresholds. The common evaluation methods were presented: Dilution analysis, detection fequency and finally time-intensity records. The influence of training, of analytical conditions together withg the lenght of analysis and  reproducibility of the panel results were discussed as important parameters.
• Basics on taste and tasty compounds, two lectures from Annick Faurion. Tasty compounds are of high importance both in the food and pharmacy domains. They have to be first understood and then assessed. This is of a particular interest for medicines where it is very risky in most cases to use a sensory panel and where there is a real market for e-tongues, even if the technology was initially developed for the food quality control. The trend of replacing sugar with sweeteners is a real challenge because the sensory perception is very different between them. So, any change in the product composition has to be sensory evaluated before coming to the market.
• Human senses cross modalities, two lectures by Charles Spence. As the human senses were detailed in previous lectures, it is important to take into account the possibility of interaction between senses. It is known the vision is the predominant sense for humans, when the most important nerve terminations are located in the skin (touch). The interactions between all senses were then detailed with the help of actual examples, opening the concept of multisensory perception. The ‘modality appropriateness' hypothesis states that most accurate / attended sense dominates. Multisensory integration can lead to super- or sub-additivity. This is important to understand the sensory decline will increasingly affect perception and well-being in elderly.
• Data and senses fusion, Crispmeter and Analysis of some success and failures applications, two lectures from The first lecture was directly related with the previous lecture. If sensory integration brings important information, why don't integrate analytical information from different techniques? The number of ‘crispy' and ‘crunchy' products is ever increasing, rising by 40% since 1994. To keep up with this demand, there is a strong desire for an instrumental method for assessing crispiness. The "Crispmeter" combines mechanical and acoustic data such as modulus, maximum force, number of peaks, energy supplied in one hand and amplitude, number of peaks, duration of peak, frequency / time and fractal dimension in the other hand. The estimation of the fractal dimension by Box-Counting from Kolmogorov was explained, leading to correlation between the Apparent Fractal Dimension and Crispiness perceived by sensory panel. The second lecture focused on actual application in the food industry. The "ideal" e-nose was then compared with the actual ones as a function of the industry needs. The main conclusion is that "Discrimination is a necessary but not sufficient condition for applications in the food industry". Correlation in the prediction of sensory attributes may be dangerous in some cases. Results from a MS-base e-nose were presented together with on-line monitoring of a flavour reaction with a sensor array. At the end, ideas for the future of e-noses were proposed as an alternative to the classical statement "I can discriminate with an electronic nose so I am very happy!!" Piero Visani.
• Two lectures were devoted to special samples which are of interest for many e-noses users that attempt to get correlation either with sensory or instrumental analysis: Ramon Aparicio gave the first one on fats and edible oils. Most of the information was provided on volatile compounds and sensory quality for virgin olive oil. Sampling methods, pre-concentration and detection techniques customized for these samples were presented in detail. Solid Phase Micro-Extraction was compared to Dynamic Headspace in terms of time, representativity and enrichment power. The identification of odour-active compounds was presented both for quality markers and potential off-odours. The particular case of "lampante" oil was studied in detail, as it is of special interest for the industry to detect rapidly this defect. An adaptation of the Ann Noble's famous wine sensory wheel was introduced for olive oils with the corresponding involved chemicals. As a conclusion, the explanation of sensory attributes by the volatile contribution was given by synergy examples between volatile. The second lecture concerned wines and spirits and was given by Thomas Schäfer. The lecturer explained the benefits that come from the use of membrane separations for analytical sample treatment. Convection, diffusion, chemical potential, activity, selectivity and driving force were defined as key-terms. Practical examples were given with the use of non-porous membranes for Muscatello wine to improve the aroma / ethanol ratio in the samples taken during fermentation.

Round table

Form the experience of the first Short Course and the positive feedback, a round table was organised at the end of the course. It provides an opportunity for the participants to make a point after the lectures, and to raise questions that were not related to a specific topic.