Inhibited Starch Emulsifiers for Stable Foams
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Solution Overview
Problem
There is a need for highly stable emulsions and foams in the food and personal care industries that utilize natural and sustainable products while maintaining the stability of Pickering particulate emulsifiers, which conventional starches fail to achieve due to gelatinization and dissolution issues.
Innovation Solution
Inhibited starch products with a protein content of 0.2-8 wt% and a median primary particle size of 0.2-5 microns, which can stabilize emulsions and foams even under extreme conditions such as high pH, temperature, and shear, by retaining their granular structure and resisting fragmentation during cooking and processing.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If conventional starches are used as emulsifiers, then they are natural and sustainable, but they fail to provide long-term stability due to gelatinization and dissolution
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies parameter changes by controlling the particle size of starch to a specific range (0.2-5 microns median primary particle size) and adjusting protein content (0.2-8 wt%) to prevent gelatinization and dissolution, thereby maintaining emulsion stability under extreme conditions including high temperature and shear
Solution Approach 2:
The patent creates a composite material system by combining starch with specific protein content (0.2-8 wt%) to form a hybrid emulsifier that leverages both the natural sustainability of starch and the stabilizing properties of protein, achieving Pickering-like stability without requiring chemical modifications
2Ease of manufacture
If starch is gelatinized to improve processing, then it becomes more functional, but it loses emulsifying capability and stability
Solution Approach 1:
The patent maintains emulsifying capability by controlling the gelatinization parameter - keeping starch particles in a specific size range (0.2-5 microns) and protein content (0.2-8 wt%) that prevents complete gelatinization, allowing the starch to remain functional for emulsification while retaining stability under processing conditions including heat and shear
3Reliability
If Pickering particulate emulsifiers are used to achieve extreme stability, then long-term stability is obtained, but natural and sustainable products are compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces complex chemical Pickering emulsifiers with a simpler, natural starch-based system that achieves comparable stability. The starch particles (0.2-5 microns) with protein content (0.2-8 wt%) act as natural Pickering emulsifiers, providing extreme long-term stability without requiring synthetic chemical modifications or crosslinking agents
Solution Approach 2:
The patent creates a natural composite emulsifier system combining starch and protein that mimics the stability mechanism of Pickering emulsions. The specific particle size (0.2-5 microns) and protein content (0.2-8 wt%) create a hybrid material that achieves Pickering-like stability while remaining entirely natural and sustainable
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The inhibited starches effectively stabilize emulsions and foams, providing long-term stability and retaining emulsifying capability even in cooked systems, making them suitable for various food and personal care products without the need for chemical modifications or crosslinking agents.
Implementation Method 1
The particles (e.g., colloidal silica, titanium oxide or clays, latex, fat crystals, aggregated proteins, cocoa powder and others) are also able to adsorb onto the interface between the two phases to stabilize the emulsion and/or foam.
Implementation Method 2
Synthetic surfactants, adsorbed to the interface of the two phases, typically have been used to increase the stability of emulsions and foams by, e.g., decreasing the interfacial tension, among other physical principles.
Data Source
AI summary
The present disclosure provides inhibited starches, methods of making inhibited starches, and emulsions and foams including them, and food and beverage products including them.