In 2019 Taiti et al. filled a part of this gap with their comprehensive PTR-MS study on 21 different chili peppers.
They concluded that "…the level of pungency was the main driver responsible for the variation in some aroma volatiles." and that there is a "…real possibility to use these tools coupled by these statistical approaches in routine operations for predicting the spiciness of fresh peppers by a rapid VOC screening analysis."
Only the extremely sensitive and selective real-time IONICON PTR-MS technology enables such a rapid screening, as either far too slow to provide high sample through-put, not sufficiently selective to distinguish the different VOCs or simply not sensitive enough for direct injection headspace analysis.
