Plasma-based atomic spectrometric techniques in wine analysis for elemental determination

Elements present in wine may originate from natural sources or be introduced through contamination during viticulture, winemaking, processing, and storage. While some contribute to nutritional and sensory characteristics, excessive concentrations of certain elements may compromise wine quality and pose potential risks to human health. Therefore, elemental characterization is important for assessing wine quality, authenticity, nutritional value, and safety. This review critically assesses scientific literature published between 2020 and 2026 on plasma-based spectrometric techniques for elemental determination in wine, focusing on sample preparation, analytical interferences, and the integration of elemental profiles with chemometric and machine-learning approaches for wine classification, traceability, and authentication. ICP OES, ICP-MS, and MIP OES remain the main techniques, with their suitability depending on the analytical objective, while emerging MICAP-OES offers a promising alternative for routine analysis when cost and sustainability are priorities. The reviewed literature also shows increasing interest in simplified sample preparation and in the use of multielemental profiles as chemical fingerprints beyond conventional elemental quantification. The main progress over the last six years has been the expansion of plasma-based spectrometric analysis toward integrated fingerprinting strategies combining elemental profiles with advanced data analysis. However, matrix effects, differences in analytical procedures, and limited robustness and transferability of classification models remain important challenges, particularly for geographically close wines. Future progress should therefore focus on greener and more harmonized analytical workflows, improved interference control, and robust validation of data-driven approaches, including integration with complementary isotopic or molecular information.