Evaluation of the perceptual interaction among key aroma compounds in milk fan by gas chromatography-olfactometry, odor threshold, and sensory analyses.

To evaluate the perceptual interactions among key aroma compounds found in milk fan, propanoic acid, butanoic acid, octanoic acid, octanal, nonanal, 2-nonanone, and ethyl hexanoate were analyzed by threshold values, aroma addition experiments (subthreshold), Feller's additive model (threshold), and σ-τ diagrams (threshold and superthreshold) at various concentrations. Aroma addition experiments highlighted that 7 key aroma compounds had significant effects on the aroma intensity of the sensory attributes of milk fan at the concentrations measured in a milk fan sample, and they might have synergistic effects with other compounds. The components of the 7 aroma compounds in binary mixtures showed synergistic effects from 21 binary mixtures by Feller's additive model. The components of 9 mixtures showed synergistic effects in the superadditive region (σ > 1.05), and 3 mixtures showed additive effects in the additive region (0.95 < σ < 1.05) of the σ-τ diagrams for all 168 binary mixtures. The results showed that perceptual interactions among the key aroma compounds in milk fan vary with different concentrations and threshold ratios. These results are helpful for further understanding the aroma of milk fan and improving the quality of its aroma.