Emulsification Speed of Amphiphilic Starches

Amphiphilic starches (sodium octenylsuccinate starches) are a well‐known emulsifier for various food and pharma applications. Typical applications are the encapsulation of lipophilic compounds such as vitamins and other micronutrients or the direct or indirect solubilization of drug substances [1]. To obtain the emulsifying activity, the hydrophilic starch molecule undergoes a chemical modification, introducing the lipophilic octenylsuccinate group.

The obtained anionic starch ester is hydrophilic and acts as emulsifier (type o/w) at low pH values. Due to numerous application cases and related requests on the emulsifier properties, it is common to customize commercial products by modifying the starch backbone. This could be done e.g. by enzymatic treatment, dextrinification or thinning with mineral acids.

This modification of the starch structure modulates crucial application properties such as the micellization in aqueous solution and the adsorption properties to hydrophobic surfaces. Literature reports, that the structure of the starch chain is of major importance of the emulsification capacity [2] and the emulsion structure.

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Materials: Several amphiphilic starches were used. They differ in the industrial way to design the starch backbone structure:

CLEARGUM® CO 03, batch E957B (Roquette Frères, France) obtained by using α‐ amylase.
HI‐CAP® 100 (Ingredion Inc.) obtained by using β‐amylase.
CLEARGUM® CO A1, batch E6060 (Roquette Frères, France) designed by using a dextrinification step.

Spray dried glucose syrup Glucidex® 29 (Roquette Frères, France), Medium chain triglycerides and sunflower oil were of laboratory / food quality.