This paper defines the main differences in glyceridic minor compounds
between virgin and refined olive oils. Modifications during the steps
of the refining process are studied and compared with differences foun
d in two series of virgin and refined oils and those during storage. T
he results demonstrate that the absence of polymerized compounds is th
e most useful parameter for the characterization of virgin oils while
the presence of dimeric triglycerides and a high ratio diglycerides/fa
tty acids are those for refined oils.