Most of the research and technological developments related to emulsions performed so far imply water as one of the involved phases. Non-aqueous, oil-in-oil, anhydrous or waterless emulsions, are common names for the dispersed systems in which water is absent. Even though the first reports in this subject were published around 50 years ago the literature on this area is sparse. In the recent years, non-aqueous emulsions became attractive as potential vehicles for the development of drug delivery systems and healthier foods. This led to the design of novel and simpler methods for the dissolution of polymeric surfactants into edible vegetable oils and improved dispersion of nonaqueous phases into structured oils giving a result very stable non-aqueous emulsion with tunable rheological properties. These emulsions have potential applicability to improve nutritional qualities of foods as well as to design vehicles for hydrophobic active pharmaceutical ingredients.
In this chapter, we will summarize the recent advances in the basic principles involved in biopolymer stabilization of non-aqueous emulsions and their potential applications for the design of foods and medicines with improved performance.
Total Pages: 326-352 (27)
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