Techniques for Formation of Nanoemulsions

  • C. Anandharamakrishnan
Chapter
First Online:
Part of the SpringerBriefs in Food, Health, and Nutrition book series (BRIEFSFOOD)

Abstract

A combination of high-energy approaches (such as high-speed and high-pressure homogenization or high-pressure homogenization and ultrasonication) can aid in the formation of nanoemulsions with very small droplet diameters. A practical approach is to emulsify the sample under conditions of increasing intensity (e.g., starting at 2,000 rpm and increasing to 20,000 rpm in a rotor-stator), especially if the dispersed phase is highly viscous. One major constraint faced by researchers after the production of nanoemulsions is the process of Ostwald ripening, wherein the mean size of the nanoemulsion increases over time due to diffusion of oil molecules from the small to large droplets through the continuous phase. This is particularly seen in nanoemulsions formed by low-energy emulsification methods. A possible means to overcome this instability mechanism is by increasing the surfactant concentration by altering the oil-to-surfactant ratio. This chapter reviews the various techniques for nanoemulsion preparation.

Keywords

Droplet Size Phase Inversion Small Droplet Size Average Droplet Size Phase Inversion Temperature 
These keywords were added by machine and not by the authors. This process is experimental and the keywords may be updated as the learning algorithm improves.
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Copyright information

© C. Anandharamakrishnan 2014

Authors and Affiliations

  • C. Anandharamakrishnan
    • 1
  1. 1.Food Engineering DepartmentCSIR-Central Food Tech. Research Inst.MysoreIndia

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