Monoglyceride concentration affects the rheological and structural properties of Pickering stabilized oleofoams

Abstract

Solid fats are high in saturated fatty acids, overconsumption of which have been related to the occurrence of certain chronic diseases. For this reason, it is highly desirable to replace them by unsaturated oils. This study was conducted to determine whether the chain length and concentration of monoglyceride could impact the rheological and structural properties of plant oil based oleofoams. Monolaurin, monomyristin, monopalmitin, and monostearin were used at three different concentration levels (5, 10, and 15%) for the production of Pickering stabilized corn oil oleofoams. The distribution of crystals in the foam was evaluated using optical and confocal laser scanning microscopy. The rheological properties and hardness of foams were evaluated through texture analysis and rheology. The melting behavior and polymorphic type were studied using differential scanning calorimetry and X-ray diffraction. The surface elasticity was measured using interfacial dilatational rheology. A simple method consisting of the creation of rosettes and the measurement of the angle was developed to easily correlate the concentration of monoglyceride with the structural and rheological properties of oleofoams. This work is helpful to understand how monoglyceride type and concentration impact oleofoam properties, and the innovative technique presented could be useful to industries and labs to quickly evaluate oleofoam properties without using expensive and complicated methods.