[Protective effect of antioxidants in spray drying of cinnamon essential oil inclusion complexes]

Spray drying is widely employed in the preparation of essential oil inclusion complexes. However, due to the high-temperature environment during drying, this technology often results in oxidative loss of essential oils within these inclusion complexes. To address this issue, this study utilized the inclusion complexes prepared from cinnamon essential oil and measured thiobarbituric acid reactive substances(TBARS) value and peroxide value(POV). Among the six antioxidants such as octyl gallate, L-ascorbyl palmitate, and propyl gallate, the antioxidants that could significantly enhance the retention rate of volatile components in the spray drying process of essential oil inclusion complexes were screened out and used as "protective agents" during the spray drying process. Furthermore, by combining a 15-day high-temperature stability test with GC-MS analysis, the effects of varying antioxidant concentrations on the retention rate of volatile components, high temperature stability, and their components in the inclusion complexes were investigated. The results revealed that both octyl gallate and propyl gallate demonstrated considerable potential in effectively preserving the volatile components. In addition, these antioxidants at specific concentrations markedly reduced the loss of volatile components and enhanced the protecting effect. The retention rates of volatile components reached 90.38% and 87.96% for octyl gallate and propyl gallate, respectively, compared to 78.36% in the control group. The protective effect was particularly pronounced at an antioxidant concentration of 0.04% under the high-temperature stability test. GC-MS analysis confirmed that the incorporation of antioxidants did not interfere with the chemical composition of the essential oil. Therefore, the addition of appropriate concentrations of antioxidants during the preparation of essential oil inclusion complexes can effectively mitigate oxidative loss and improve both the retention and stability of volatile components.