Crystallization behavior of anhydrous milk fat-sunflower oil wax blends.

This research evaluates the effect of sunflower oil wax (SFOw) addition on the crystallization behavior and functional properties of anhydrous milk fat (AMF). Induction times of nucleation, melting behavior, microstructure of crystals, and hardness were evaluated for samples of pure AMF and AMF with 0.1 and 0.25% SFOw. Results from this research show that the addition of waxes induced the onset of crystallization of AMF by inducing its nucleation, as evidenced by decreased induction times of nucleation and the formation of smaller crystals. Crystal growth after tempering was also promoted by waxes, and significantly harder lipid networks were obtained. Results presented in this paper suggest that SFOw can be used as an additive to alter the physiochemical properties of low trans-fatty acid lipids.