Volatile release from self-assembly structured emulsions: effect of monoglyceride content, oil content, and oil type

Monoglycerides (MGs) can form self-assembled structures in emulsions, which can be used to control volatile release. In this study, initial headspace concentrations (C(initial)), maximum headspace concentrations (C(max)), release rates, and partition coefficients of propanol, diacetyl, hexanal, and limonene were determined in MG structured oil-in-water emulsions using dynamic and static headspace analyses. For all of the volatile compounds, C(initial) values above structured emulsions were significantly lower than those above unstructured emulsions and decreased with increasing MG contents (p < 0.05). However, volatiles had higher release rates in emulsions with higher MG contents. When oil content was reduced from 20 to 10%, C(initial) and C(max) increased for limonene and hexanal and decreased for propanol and diacetyl. When different oils were applied, both C(initial) and C(max) were significantly lower in medium-chain triglyceride emulsions than in soybean oil emulsions (p < 0.05). Static headspace analysis revealed that volatile compounds had significantly lower air-emulsion partition coefficients in the structured emulsions than in unstructured emulsions (p < 0.05). These results indicated that MG structured emulsions can be potentially used as delivery systems to modulate volatile release.