Preparation and Starch Encapsulation Uses - Term Paper Example

Starch Encapsulation uses Starch encapsulation uses Introduction Molecular encapsulation can be described as the confinement of a gust molecule inside a cavity of supramolecular host molecule. It is imperative to note that in many cases an important implication when it comes to the encapsulating of a molecule is that the guest must always be prevented from contacting other element as well as molecules which it might otherwise react wit. This is because the enpasulated molecule might behave differently from the way it could have by being put in a solution. Further, it is imperative to understand that the guest molecule needs to be extremely unreactive and for this reason, it often has diverse and different spectroscopic signatures. Starch encapsulation has become popular in recent times because of its potential uses. Several researchers have done research in order to establish the importance of starch encapsulation in various compounds. According to Matos (2013), double emulsions often have potential applications when it comes to cosmetic and pharmaceutical industries. This is because they are vehicles of encapsulation and delivery of nutrients during the process of food digestion as well as drug release. However, the major drawback according to Matos of these emulsions is the fact that they are often very difficult to stabilize. The particle stabilized emulsions which are often referred to as Pickering emulsions often show special features such as being stable with respect to coalescence. The starch granules over the years have proved to be especially good stabilizers for food grade pickering emulsions. In the research by Matos, starch double pickering solutions were carefully prepared and their encapsulation stability was carefully observed and studies as well as the impact of a varying lipophilic emulsifier content. The encapsulation properties were observed and then quantified by monitoring the release of what can be described as a hydrophilic dye from the aqueous phase. This was done spectrophometrically. The two double emulsions were then taken to the laboratory and studied. It was then determined that indeed starch granules are very suitable stabilizers for food grade pickering emulsions. This is because the initial encapsulation efficiency was over 98% after the emulsification production. It remained that way and in some instances the encapsulation stability went over 90%. Techniques used in starch encapsulation Introduction Encapsulation often involves the incorporation of good ingredients in enzymes, cells as well as other materials in small capsules. In fact, the application of this technique has been pivotal as it has increased the food industry since the encapsulated materials can often be protected from heat, extreme conditions and moisture. This often enhances viability and stability. The encpauslation process is also used to mask odors and other bad tastes. It can be argued that there are various techniques that are often employed in a bid to form the capsules and they often include spray drying, spray chilling, fluidized bed coating and liposome entrapment. Liposome entrapment Liposome entrapment has been able to grow over the years and has become one of the main methods used in starch encapsulation. The process of entrapment often involves a number of criteria in order to characterize the entrapment of materials that exist inside the liposomes. In fact, the process of liposome entrapment often depends on several preparation parameters. In fact, the use of encapsulation for flavors and swettners such as aspartane flavors is well known. Further, fats, alginates are often merged with starch when it comes to this approach. They include physiochemical characteristics of the material that are to be entrapped and those of the liposomal ingredients. Secondly, there is the nature of the medium in which the lipid versicles should be dispersed into and lastly the effective concentration of the entrapped substance as well as its potential toxicity. The additional process that involves during application as well as the delivery of the vesicles is also of worth to note. Lastly, the optimum size and batch to batch reproducibility as well as possibility of large scale production should also be put into use. Applications of the technique This technique are often used in cheese making, food emulsions such as spreads, flavoring agents, leavening agents,and agents that have undesirable flavors. Augus (2012) through controlled research was able to set up a platform of starch complexes based on the release of aroma substances by salivary fluids. Menthone and Menthol in the study were used as model flavor compounds primarily for complexation with the different content of amylase. The complexes were especially characterized by X-ray diffraction commonly referred to as XRD, the now famed differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and Atomic force microscopy (Augus, 2012). In this study, aroma retention was tested under PH, storage, and temperature challenges. In addition, the kinetic aroma release was also simulated in saliva fluids and it was later tested. It is imperative to understand that both menthol as well as Menthone were able to from a V-amylose complexes in what can be described as a food grade. In this process, the limonene does not form the complexes effectively. However, it is imperative to understand that the complexation in this experiment was higher and it included more aroma and less free core content. This happened as the amylase content was increasing. Further, it was tested and found out that the melting temperature was well above 90 degrees centigrade. Te digestion results further showed that the complexes can be able to release aroma in when put in the oral cavity. Natan Gray (2011) also seems to support the idea that starch encapsulation may be able to improve flavor stability. Natan aimed to produce complexes that were starch based that had aroma compounds. He also wanted to examine the potential for the oral discharge by salivary fluids which were mainly based on the thought that encapsulation of flavors by dissimilar starch complexes often leads to increased stabilization, release of profiles, control retention as well as protection against spoilage. He especially found out that the technique could often provide what can be described as a foodstuff grade compound of a nanometric size. This food grade complex often serves as an well-organized podium by which the control release of fragrance in the verbal cavity can be enabled. The results of his work therefore support the possibility of the development of a non-scale proscribed release liberation system of fragrance that is based on native starches. The study therefore, showed that the starch bouquet complex are very stable at high temperatures. This in agreement to Augus (2012) who stated that at high temperatures, the variety of PH has long storage time. They further showed that the encapsulation of dissimilar flavor ingredients is also very attractive and a very extensively investigated region of food knowledge. The researchers concluded that it is a well recognized that starch is able to outline enclosure and it is able to form complexes with small molecules. It is imperative to understand that as noted by various researchers, starch is a extensively used constituent in food and consequently, its inclusion in complexes that are based on starch can be described as being of major interest because the salivary alpha amylase might breakdown the starch fragrance complex and as a result release the aroma compound while one is chewing. Still in relation to consumable food, a novel as well as biocompatible microgel system was developed in order to control uptake as well as release of proteins. The microgel system contains TEMPO- tarnished potato starch polymers, that are often chemically cross linked to STMP sodium trimetaphosphate. The physical chemical properties that govern the microgels often have different and diverse weight ratios to cross linker polymers. Further, there is also a relation to the degrees of oxidation. The charge density that existed in the microgels was also determined by proton titration and was especially found to be in good conformity with the predictable degree of oxidation. From this research it was determined that the preparation and categorization of oxidized starch polymers microgels for purpose encapsulation as well as controlled discharge of practical ingredients was made possible by the use of highly charged microgels which had an intermediate cross linker polymer ratios. They were especially found to be optimal when it came to the encapsulating of the lysozyme. Zielinska (1997) argued that biomass encapsulation often shows promise and overcomes drawbacks that are encountered with gel entrapment such as gel matrix and diffusional limitation. The research studied biocompatible capsules which consisted of liquid starch core that had calcium alginate membranes that are often developed and their formation conditions chosen on the basis of their diffusivity measurements and membrane strengths. The acidification activity of some of the encapsulated lactobacillus acidpphilus cells were very similar to what was achieved in free cell fermentation as well as increased subsequent reuse. The research showed that cationic starch solution which contained calcium ions of calcium when dropped into the anionic alginate, there was no significant increase in capsule diameter and this showed that the complete utilization of the calcium for the cross linking of the alginate outer layer was possible. Another major use of starch encapsulation is it use is plant oils. Glenn (2010) argues in his research that natural plants often produces essential oils which has over the years gained interest for use when it comes to pest control in place of synthetic pesticides because of the environment impact that they possess. The essential oils in many cases can be very effective when it comes to the control of parasitic mites, which might at times infest honeybee colonies. However, it is imperative to understand that effective encapsulants are often needed in many cases to provide a sustained as well as targeted delivery, which minimizes the amount of any active ingredient that is used. The study done showed that encapsulation of essential oils in different microspheres that are within the size range of pollen grains can often be easily dispersed. These microspheres in many cases were made by pumping an 8% aqueous high amylase starch that is supposed to melt through the atomizing nozzle. The atomized starch droplets are often air-classified into two fractions and consequently collected in ethanol. It is imperative to understand that the size range for each fraction was carefully measured using a particle size analyzer. Te experiment concluded that the essential oils had largely appeared to be sequestered especially under the pore structure. This is because all the spheres remained with a free flowing powder and further exhibited little aggloremation despite the loading rate being very high. Lastly, the SEM micrographs were verified and this suggested that the pore structure was stable, and it was evidenced by persistence of pores in different spheres, which had been effectively loaded with different essential oils, and then had all the oil removed by solvent extraction. The thermal gravimetric analyses were very consistent with predicted levels of loading rates. Another important use is indicated by Helena Azevedo who reports the effect of amlylase encapsulation when it comes to the degradation rate of starch based biomaterial. The encapsulation method often consists of mixing a thermo stable amylase with a blend of cornstarch as well as a SPCL. They were then processed by compression and moulding was done in a bid to produce circular disks. The presence of water was particularly avoided in order to keep the water activity low and to minimize the enzyme activity during the entire encapsulation process. The degradation of the starch matrix occurred mainly during the process of processing as well as storage (the encapsulated enzyme however remained inactive due to the consequent absence of water). This is because there was no significant amount, which would enable the present reducing sugars to be easily detected when it came to the solution. After the entire encapsulation process, the released enzyme activity from the disks (SPCL) after 28 days and nights was found to be around 40% comparatively to the unprocessed free enzyme. It is imperative to understand that the degradation studies that was done on the SPCL disks and had amylase encapsulated showed no differences when it came to the degradation behavior between the two conditions. This therefore, indicates that the amylase enzyme was therefore, successfully encapsulated with almost a full retention of its enzymatic activity. Further, this also showed that the encapsulation of the amylase accelerated the degradation rate of the disks (SPCL) as compared to the enzyme free disks. In conclusion, this study showed with authority that the degradation kinetics of the starch polymer can be easily controlled by the amount of encapsulated amylase in to the matrix. Song (2012) in his research showed that filler modification with starch encapsulation in order to improve paper properties. The research was intended to show whether one could improve the boundability of inorganic filler particles when it came to wood fibers and be able to maintain the specific paper strength at higher filler content. There are two approaches this type of encapsulation, the first is the dry approach or commonly referred to as the spray dry methods. This method involves adding starch to water in high temperatures and then sprays drying the filler, dissolved starch and water. The second method is the wet approach, which includes the use of starch- filler composite precipitation method by the use of a fatty acid. The starch-coated filler was able to show higher strength properties by adding te filler and starch separately in the wet end. The techniques of the filler medication with starch encapsulation can also be easily used for both clay as well as PCC and this eventually gives it a lot of importance. Lastly, the starch-coated fillers can be able to be applied to the different paper grades that exist and are not necessary tied down to one paper grade. Pesticides over the years have been encapsulated with starch matrices using various techniques in order to control the rate of release, the rate of decomposition, the rate of leaching, dermal toxicity, groundwater contamination as well as other problems that are often caused by the use of active agents. According to Schreiber and Shasha (1988), the successful starch encapsulation techniques include covalent and ionic cross-linking of coagulation of alkali treated starch, starch xanthate, and starch that was treated with chemicals such as boric acid and calcium chloride as well as retrograde of starch without different chemicals. The starch retro gradation technique can especially be described as attractive especially when it comes to agricultural feed, medicine, food, as well as other uses because the procedure is quite economical and simple. Further, this procedure also eliminates the use of cross-linking chemicals. The bioactive agents in many cases are incorporated into starch matrices by the use of batch methods, which can be said to have processing flexibility, efficiency and control. In conclusion, the work of these authors who worked with atrazine-, which is a common agricultural herbicide-, was encapsulated using cornstarch matrices using the twin-screw extrusion. From the study, the effects of processing variables as well as encapsulation efficiency, and rate of herbicide was investigated and it was found that it was very effective. Weislling who conducted field and laboratory experiments conducted from the year 1987 to the year 1989 did another similar study. The research was conducted to determine whether the plant derived semiochemicals as well as carbmate insecticides, which were encapsulated in starch borate SMB and pregelatinized starch matrices could be used to attract as well as kill rootworm, beetles and other pests that were concentrated within cornfields. However, from the experiement it was found out that the mortality rate was very low despite the fact that some beetles were observed to be feeding from the granules. The low mortality levels of the pests were generally attributed to the lack and loss of carbarly during the formulation process. The lab assay results indicated that methonyl, carbaryl that was formulated in the PGM was able to effectively kill the pests. The research concluded that there was a need to formulate different chemicals in starch borate in a bid to attract and kill pests and that the encapsulated starch was a primary factor. However, other elements could come in handy depending on the pest in question, this was because there were some pests that could not be killed by a specific chemical but the same chemical would increase its mortality levels in the presence of a different pest. Needs for further research There is however, room for further research into other various use of encapsulated starch. There is a need to especially conduct further research into the role of encapsulated starch when it comes to biodegradable polymers, which can eventually replace plastics. Further research is tantamount in this sector as plastics, which are biodegradable have over the years filled up litter bins and landfills and are causing a lot of environmental harm. For this reason, there is a need to develop biodegradable plastics and encapsulated starch will play a very big role in this process. In the present day, the world can be said to be in an early stage of promising new technology, which aims at producing a broad spectrum of plastic products, which will contain very high levels of starch. This technology can be easily traced back to the 1970’s however; further research needs to be conducted. Further, there is also a need to do further research in encapsulation of agricultural materials such as insecticides and herbicides. This will be imperative in ensuring that there is an improvement in pest control technology, which is needed to reduce losses in agricultural production and in order to reduce negative environmental impact of chemical pesticides. The new technology should be able to target only pesticides as well as substantially decrease the environmental impact. Problems that are yet to be solved Several problems are yet to be solved in regards to starch encapsulation. In particular, the question of encapsulated starch being suitable for human consumption has come under huge criticism from several intellectual quarters. There are those that have argued that during the encapsulation process, many at times there are other chemicals that occur naturally that are conjoined and may bring unprecedented effects to the human body. This can be seen in the many inconsistencies that have rocked the world of research in starch encapsulation, the same experiments have been bringing different results and this therefore, can be said to confirm that indeed there are times that starch encapsulation can go wrong because of reaction to different chemicals. Another problem is the fact, field studies show that there are times when the same starch encapsulated product reacts differently based on the type of plant that is being used. This has decreased commercial interest as the private sector as not been very cooperative in agreeing to co-operate research efforts using licensing patents. The additional field trials as well as engineering studies are very expensive and for this reason, this means that it is not feasible to conduct the research. In order to solve these problems there is a need for the government to intervene and provide a reliable research fund that will help potential researchers to do quality research without financial constraints. The process of starch encapsulation and its consequent testing is a very expensive venture and consequently, there is a need for government funding. Furthermore, the government will eventually benefit, as it will be able to get rid of several problems that often disturb it such as the presence of plastics that are not biodegradable. 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