Jarpa-Parra Marcela, Moraga-Bustos Sergio, Gutiérrez-Turner Eduardo, Tabilo-Munizaga Gipsy
Núcleo de Investigación en Agroalimentos y Nutrición Aplicada, Universidad Adventista de Chile, Chillán 3780000, Chile.
Facultad de Ingeniería, Universidad Adventista de Chile, Chillán 3780000, Chile.
Materials (Basel). 2023 Jul 12;16(14):4965. doi: 10.3390/ma16144965.
Biofoams are a challenge for scientists in terms of innovation. Incorporation of cellulose fibrils (CF), might help improve the microstructure of foams, thus this study focuses on studying the impact of CF on the foaming properties and rheology of lentil protein (LP) foams at various pH and CF concentrations. Additionally, LP-CF mixtures were transformed into solid foams, and their microstructure, physical properties, and morphology were evaluated. CF concentration significantly impacted on LP-CF foam properties, primarily due to high viscosity values. Increased CF concentration resulted in improved FS values (up to 77 min) at all pH values. This is likely attributed to associative interactions and coacervates formation. Also, foam microstructure could be related to apparent viscosity, suggesting the role of viscosity in preserving the integrity of the wet foam structure during freezing and lyophilization processes. However, elevated viscosity values might negatively impact properties such as foaming capacity and produce denser microstructures. The microstructure and morphology analysis revealed that certain foams exhibited a sponge-like structure with open pores and semi-spherical shapes, supported by CF fibers extending and forming layers. However, the structure itself was irregular. While others exhibited non-uniform, irregular pore size, and shape, along with a denser structure. These findings contribute to understanding the behavior of LP-CF mixtures, although additional investigations on mechanical properties, biodegradability, and hydrophobicity are necessary to reach their full potential for various applications.
生物泡沫在创新方面对科学家来说是一项挑战。加入纤维素原纤维（CF）可能有助于改善泡沫的微观结构，因此本研究着重于研究在不同pH值和CF浓度下CF对扁豆蛋白（LP）泡沫的发泡性能和流变学的影响。此外，将LP-CF混合物转化为固体泡沫，并对其微观结构、物理性质和形态进行评估。CF浓度对LP-CF泡沫性能有显著影响，主要是由于高粘度值。在所有pH值下，CF浓度的增加导致泡沫稳定性（FS）值提高（高达77分钟）。这可能归因于缔合相互作用和凝聚层的形成。此外，泡沫微观结构可能与表观粘度有关，这表明粘度在冷冻和冻干过程中保持湿泡沫结构完整性方面的作用。然而，粘度值升高可能会对发泡能力等性能产生负面影响，并产生更致密的微观结构。微观结构和形态分析表明，某些泡沫呈现出具有开孔和半球形的海绵状结构，由延伸并形成层的CF纤维支撑。然而，结构本身是不规则的。而其他泡沫则表现出孔径和形状不均匀、不规则，以及结构更致密。这些发现有助于理解LP-CF混合物的行为，尽管还需要对其机械性能、生物降解性和疏水性进行额外研究，以充分发挥其在各种应用中的潜力。
