Effects of Fatty Acid Addition to Oil-in-water Emulsions Stabilized with Sucrose Fatty Acid Ester.

Adding fatty acids to an oil-in-water (O/W) emulsion changes the stability of the emulsion. In this study, we prepared a series of O/W emulsions consisting of oil (triolein/fatty acid mixture), water and a range of surfactants (sucrose fatty acid esters) with varying hydrophilic-lipophilic balance (HLB) in order to determine the effects of alkyl chain length and the degree of unsaturation of the fatty acid molecules on the stability of the emulsions. As a result, sucrose fatty acid esters with HLB = 5-7 were suitable for obtaining O/W emulsions. In addition, the creaming phenomenon was inhibited for 30 days or more when fatty acids having a linear saturated alkyl chain with 14 or more carbon atoms were added. These findings are useful for designing stable O/W emulsions for food and cosmetic products.