Organogels, O/W and W/O emulsion gels structured by monoglycerides: the study on the gelation behavior and crystal network

Abstract

Recently, there has been increasing enthusiasm for developing healthy and viable fat analogues, it is meaningful to design oil-containing gels with different structures and variable characteristics using widely used monoglyceride (MAG). Herein, oil-containing gels with different structures and textures, including organogels, oil-in-water (O/W), and water-in-oil (W/O) emulsion gels, were prepared using glyceryl mono-palmitin (GMP) and glyceryl mono-stearate (GMS), respectively. Clustered crystallites of GMP showed higher oil loss while needle-like crystal network of GMS was responsible for higher hardness. Moreover, the difference in the fatty acid composition exerted an effect on the T_k during cooling. The network self-assembled by GMS and co-emulsifiers led to fat-like O/W emulsion gels while the oil fractions affected the texture. The formation of W/O emulsion gels was achieved by the crystal adsorption irreversibly at the interface and gelling enhancement in the oil phase. The structure and water content of GMS-based gels impacted their tribological behaviors. The amount and distribution of highly viscous and stiff crystals dominated the friction coefficient of organogels and W/O emulsion gels. The inclusion of a dispersed water phase induced a lubrication behavior different from pure organogels, Pickering crystal-stabilized droplets were supposed to result in a more stable interface, sufficiently elastic to prevent droplet deformation. This work would benefit further studies relating to the required food application of MAG-based gels, and guide the design of the fat mimetic with controlled structures.