Some selected examples of the analytical characterization and determination of NMs in the food field according to the technique involved

Type of information providedMore common analytical techniques (*)Selected applications (references)
Size distribution, shape, aggregation state, surfaceSEM, TEM, AFM, STEM, DLS, ICP-MS, HPLC, CE, FFF, SEC[1114]
Hydrodynamic diameter, surface charge, zeta potentialDLS[11, 12, 14]
Structural characterizationRS, LIF, UV-vis, IR, FTIR, XRF, XPS, NMR, MS[1522]
QuantificationICP-MS, sp-ICP-MS, SEC, HDC, FFF[8, 2328]

(*) SEM: scanning electron microscopy; TEM: transmission electron microscopy; AFM: atomic force microscopy; STEM: scanning TEM; DLS: dynamic light scattering; ICP-MS: inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry; HPLC: high performance liquid chromatography; CE: capillary electrophoresis; FFF: field flow fractionation; SEC: size exclusion chromatography; RS: Raman spectroscopy; LIF: laser-induced fluorescence; UV-vis: ultraviolet-visible spectroscopy; IR: infrared spectroscopy; FTIR: Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy; XRD: X-ray diffraction; XRF: X-ray fluorescence; XPS: X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy; NMR: nuclear magnetic resonance; MS: mass spectrometry; sp-ICP-MS: single particle ICP-MS; HDC: hydrodynamic chromatography