Oil migration in 2-component confectionery systems

Oil migration from high oil content centers into chocolate coatings results in product quality changes. The objective of this study was to monitor and model peanut oil migration in 2-layer systems of increasing phase complexity. Three 2-layer systems were prepared: peanut oil/cocoa butter; peanut butter paste/cocoa butter; and peanut butter paste/chocolate. Magnetic resonance imaging was used to measure liquid oil signal as a function of position over a storage time of 193 days at 25 degrees C. The 3 types of samples exhibited appreciably different patterns of oil migration. The peanut oil/cocoa butter samples had mass transfer typical of oil being absorbed into a liquid/solid region. The peanut butter paste/cocoa butter magnetic resonance profiles were characterized by mass transfer with a partition coefficient greater than unity. The peanut butter paste/chocolate samples exhibited a time-dependent peanut oil concentration at the interface between the chocolate and peanut butter paste. The spatial and temporal experimental data of the peanut butter paste/chocolate samples were modeled using a Fickian diffusion model, fitting for the effective diffusivity. Values of the diffusivity for the 6 chocolate formulations ranged from 1.10 to 2.01 x 10(-13) m(2)/s, with no statistically significant differences.