Abstract:Pickering emulsions have been widely applied in the food industry, emphasizing the importance of elucidating the relationship between stabilizer properties and emulsion stability. Two mixed systems were prepared: one comprising microcrystalline cellulose and soy protein isolate, and the other incorporating cellulose nanocrystals and soy protein isolate. A comparison was conducted to analyze the effects of stabilizers on the properties of Pickering emulsions by examining the differences in the surface charge, micromorphology, conformational structure, and interfacial adsorption characteristics of the systems. The interfacial protein adsorption rate was reduced from 52.19% to 40.55%, and the emulsion particle size was increased from 13.26 μm to 20.58 μm by incorporating microcrystalline cellulose in the soy protein isolate system, with no marked improvement being observed in the rheological properties and stability of the Pickering emulsion. Complexes of cellulose nanocrystals and proteins were formed by electrostatic interactions and hydrogen bonds, resulting in an emulsion with a stable spatial network structure. The interfacial protein adsorption rate increased to 59.16%~76.81%, and the emulsion particle size reduced from 3.99 μm to 6.75 μm. Superior rheological properties and stability were observed in Pickering emulsions formulated with cellulose nanocrystal-soy protein isolate complexes at high cellulose nanocrystal proportions, with optimal performances at a cellulose nanocrystal-to-soy protein isolate ratio of 1:3. In summary, cellulose nanocrystals can be utilized to produce high-quality Pickering emulsions by forming complexes with protein. This study offers theoretical insights for the development of cellulose derivative-soy protein isolate Pickering emulsions and presents an innovative and effective strategy for producing stable Pickering emulsions.
