Modern Analytical Approaches for Edible Oil Characterization: Spectroscopic, Chromatographic, and Electrochemical Perspectives

Edible oils are a major component of the human diet and an important source of essential fatty acids, antioxidants, vitamins, and bioactive compounds. Their chemical composition, oxidative stability, and authenticity influence nutritional value, sensory properties, shelf life, and consumer safety. Consequently, the development of reliable analytical methods for evaluating oil quality and detecting adulteration has become important in both scientific research and industrial quality control. This review provides an overview of contemporary analytical approaches used for the characterization of edible oils, focusing on spectroscopic, chromatographic, and electrochemical techniques. Spectroscopic methods, including UV–Vis, infrared, fluorescence, and Raman spectroscopy, are discussed as rapid, non-destructive tools for evaluating oxidation processes, fatty acid composition, and authenticity. Chromatographic approaches, such as gas chromatography, high-performance liquid chromatography, and thin-layer chromatography, are presented as highly selective techniques for determining fatty acids, sterols, tocopherols, phenolic compounds, and contaminants. Particular attention is given to the growing role of electrochemical methods, especially voltammetric techniques, in assessing antioxidant capacity, monitoring oxidative degradation, and detecting bioactive compounds and contaminants in edible oils. The review highlights the importance of chemometric analysis, multisensor systems, machine learning algorithms, and hybrid analytical platforms integrating spectroscopic and electrochemical data. Emerging trends related to portable devices, miniaturized sensors, lab-on-a-chip systems, and green analytical chemistry are discussed as future directions for edible oil analysis. The presented overview demonstrates that integrating advanced analytical technologies with artificial intelligence and sustainable experimental design may improve the reliability, speed, and environmental compatibility of edible oil quality assessment in laboratory and industrial applications.