LWT-FOOD SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
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2024
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IF 6
Mengjing Zhou,Bin Li,Aolin Wu,Zhigang Hu,Jizhen Liu,Ying Wang,Haiying Liu
This study utilized beeswax and k-carrageenan as gelling agents to prepare oleogels and hydrogels, respectively. The amalgamation of the two gels in frozen water led to the formation of bigels. With the goal to improve the consistency and long-lasting nature of the bigel, starch was added to the mixture. A study was then done to evaluate how the addition of starch affected the thermal, mechanical, and rheological properties, as well as the capacity of the bigel to withstand freeze-thaw resilience. The results indicated that the bigel without starch exhibited a melting temperature comparable to that of the oleogel. However, the inclusion of starch resulted in a decrease in the melting temperature to 44.88 °C, accompanied by a wider endothermic peak. The enthalpy of the bigel with additional starch dramatically increased to 42.227 J/g. The addition of starch significantly improved the mechanical characteristics of the bigel, resulting in an average increase in hardness of 32.3% and Young's modulus of 54.2%. Furthermore, the bigel demonstrated exceptional freeze-thaw stability, exhibiting an average enhancement of around 5% when compared to the equivalent without starch. The use of hydrogel enhanced the thermal durability of the bigel, preventing structural collapse when the ambient temperature rose. This study proposes a method to produce starch bigels that possess excellent freeze-thaw stability and rheological properties.
研究领域:
食品科学
·
材料科学
✓ 已验证
产品关联
DOI
高影响因子
FOOD HYDROCOLLOIDS
·
2023
·
IF 10.7
Dengke Xie,Hong Hu,Qingrong Huang,Xuanxuan Lu
This study objected to widen the knowledge and applications of bigels by constructing food bigels for 3D printing. A serious of bigels were developed by incorporating a candelilla wax-based oleogel into a gelatin hydrogel at different oleogel/hydrogel ratios of 3:7, 5:5, and 7:3 under the presence of different emulsifiers (PGPR, monoglycerides and lecithin). And the influence of different oleogel/hydrogel ratios and emulsifiers on the physical properties and 3D printability of resulting bigels were studied. Bigels containing monoglycerides or lecithin could form homogenous, stable gel system with bicontinuous emulsion structure . Microstructure analysis found that PGPR could disturbed the crystalline process of candelilla wax resulting in weak mechanical strength of resulting oleogel and phase separation of bigels. These bigels exhibited shear-thinning behavior and improved mechanical properties (apparent viscosity, storage modulus, hardness, etc.) compared to pure oleogel and pure hydrogel. Bigels containing monoglyceride with oleogel/hydrogel ratio of 7:3 exhibited suitable mechanical properties for 3D printing. The results from this study indicated that 3D printable bigels could be obtained by combining candelilla wax (organogelators) with gelatin (hydrogelator), and the physical, printing properties of these bigels could be tailored by adjusting oleogel/hydrogel ratios and using different emulsifiers.
研究领域:
食品科学
·
材料科学
✓ 已验证
产品关联
DOI
高影响因子
FOOD CHEMISTRY
·
2025
·
IF 9.8
Yue Chen,Jingjing Huang,Yexu Wu,Xiaoqiang Chen
The O/W interface behavior of tea polysaccharide conjugate-egg white protein (TPC/EWP) nanoparticles was investigated and a bigel system was constructed. The results showed that TPC/EWP nanoparticles with better storage and thermal stability were successfully prepared, in which the mass ratio of tea polysaccharide conjugate to egg white protein of 3:1 helped to enhance the diffusion, penetration and rearrangement processes. To make O/W interfacial layer had higher viscoelasticity and expansion modulus. The nanoparticle-based bigel exhibited fine texture and was not easy to flow. In addition, the tight gel network endowed the bigels with strong rheological properties and stability. These results establish a theoretical foundation for further investigation into O/W interface behavior of TPC/EWP nanoparticles. The bigels' excellent gel properties and stability provide a new direction for applying the bigel as a novel food in the food field.
研究领域:
食品科学
·
界面化学
✓ 已验证
DOI
PubMed
高影响因子
FOOD CHEMISTRY
·
2022
·
IF 9.231
Huanhuan Cui,Cuie Tang,Shan Wu,David Julian McClements,Shilin Liu,Bin Li,Yan Li
In this study, chitosan-based bigels were fabricated, where glycerol monolaurate was added in MCT oil to produce a gelled lipid phase and cinnamaldehyde was included in the lipid phase in order to act as a crosslinking agent. The synergistic effect of pH on chemical crosslinking effects was investigated. The potential of using these bigels as an alternative to cream was also investigated. The pH of the aqueous phase played an important role in controlling the extent of the Schiff-base reaction promoted by cinnamaldehyde. At pH 3.8, the bigels formed were homogenous but at pH 5.0 and 5.5 they exhibited phase separation, which highlighted the importance of chemical crosslinking. To better mimic the properties of real cream, span 80 was added to create a more homogeneous and smoother structure of the bigels. These bigels might provide a healthy and more sustainable alterative to food products that contain plastic fats, like cream.
研究领域:
食品科学
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生物材料
·
化学工程
✓ 已验证
产品关联
DOI
PubMed
高影响因子
FOOD HYDROCOLLOIDS
·
2024
·
IF 11
Min Pang,Lu Xu,Yuanfei Ge,Jieshun Cheng,Zhongjun Zhang,Lili Cao
This study developed bigels as substitutes for solid fats, utilizing beeswax/plant sterol esters oleogel and gelatin/whey protein isolates hydrogel. Analysis focused on the effects of varying hydrogel to oleogel ratios on their microstructure, textural properties, and stability. As the oleogel content surpassed 50 wt%, a shift from O/W to W/O type was observed. Bigels with 60 wt%-80 wt% oleogel content exhibit higher hardness, ranging from 298.53 ± 30.33g to 376.55 ± 30.43g. Those with 50 wt% oleogel content show a peak shear strength of 8067.18 ± 17.41 g.sec. The melting temperatures of the bigels ranged from 52.218 to 109.423 °C, higher than the single oleogel at 45.934 °C. X-ray diffraction revealed a polycrystalline structure with α, β, and β′ polymorphs in the W/O bigels, indicating a more organized structure with increased oleogel. During the sensory evaluation, bigels with 60 wt% oleogel content (8.22 ± 0.22) closely resembled butter (8.58 ± 0.14), achieving the highest overall acceptability. After 30 days at room temperature (25 °C), the bigels with 60 wt% oleogel content exhibited excellent water retention (83.78 ± 3.70%) and oil retention (80.05 ± 1.93%), promising for the design of sustainable, low-calorie fat alternatives.
研究领域:
食品科学
·
材料科学
✓ 已验证
产品关联
DOI
高影响因子
FOOD HYDROCOLLOIDS
·
2024
·
IF 11
Wenmeng Liu,Kunfeng Liu,David Julian McClements,Zhengyu Jin,Long Chen
Edible bigels are being developed to replace plastic fats in the food industry due to their ability to form semi-solids with controllable properties. In this study, biopolymer hydrogels were formed using modified corn starch with chitosan, betaine, and vanillin, whereas oleogels were formed from insect wax in soybean oil. The impact of varying the hydrogel-to-oleogel ratio on the properties of bigels was then examined. The rheological, oil-binding capacity (OBC), water-oil distribution, structural, and 3D printing characteristics of the bigels were evaluated. Higher hydrogel-to-oleogel ratios resulted in improved rheological properties of bigels. Hydrogen bonding, electrostatic interactions, and covalent Schiff base bonds played an important role in the formation and properties of the hydrogels. In contrast, the mechanical strength of the oleogels was mainly attributed to van der Waals attraction between the insect wax crystals. The optimized bigels had good OBC and mechanical strength. Furthermore, increasing the hydrogel-to-oleogel ratio induced a transition from W/O to O/W type structure in the bigels. A study of the potential application of the bigels as edible inks showed that bigels with a high hydrogel-to-oleogel ratio had better 3D printing characteristics. The findings of this study suggest that bigels can be successfully used as solid fat substitutes.
研究领域:
食品科学
·
生物材料学
✓ 已验证
DOI
高影响因子
FOOD AND BIOPRODUCTS PROCESSING
·
2025
·
IF 3.4
Bin Li,Mengjing Zhou,Haibo Qin,Aolin Wu,Jiawei Li,Ying Wang,Zhigang Hu
This study aimed to investigate the synergistic effect between gelatin and κ-carrageenan on the structure and properties of bigels. Beeswax was used as the oleogelator, while gelatin and κ-carrageenan served as hydrogelators to prepare oleogels and hydrogels separately. The two gels were subsequently mixed in an ice-water bath to form bigels. By adjusting the ratio of gelatin to κ-carrageenan in the hydrogel phase, the microstructure, freeze–thaw stability, and rheological properties of the resulting bigels were systematically characterized. The results revealed that increasing gelatin content led to a reduction in interfacial tension within the aqueous phase, resulting in finer oil droplet dispersion and a more homogeneous and compact microstructure. The synergistic interaction between gelatin and κ-carrageenan enhanced the stability of the hydrogel network and improved its oil encapsulation capacity, thereby significantly improving the freeze–thaw stability of the bigels. Rheological analysis showed that an appropriate proportion of gelatin notably increased the storage modulus of the bigels, indicating a more robust internal structure. This study provides a novel strategy for the development of high-performance structured lipids for food applications.
研究领域:
食品科学
·
材料科学
·
胶体与界面科学
·
高分子科学
✓ 已验证
产品关联
DOI
高影响因子
LWT-FOOD SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
·
2025
·
IF 6.6
Lijuan Han,Yingxin Chen,Li Wang,Mingwen Chen,Junbo He,Weinong Zhang,Shuyi Li
This study developed and investigated inulin–lecithin-based bigels (ILBs) incorporating β-sitosterol (SIT) or beeswax (BW) as crystalline structuring agents, aiming to improve the limited plasticity and weak structural properties of conventional ILBs. Both β-sitosterol and beeswax were employed to modulate the physical properties of bigels for their potential use as solid fat replacers. The addition of β-sitosterol or beeswax converted the control formulation from a free-flowing system into a structured bigel, with beeswax forming denser and more homogeneous crystalline networks. Control ILBs exhibited a hardness of 0.040 N, compared to 0.391 N for 4.5 %BW-bigel, confirming the significant structural enhancement. Microscopy, texture profile analysis, and oil/water-binding capacity tests indicated that beeswax more effectively enhanced gel strength, plasticity, and stability, especially at higher concentrations. In the beeswax group, increasing concentration from 1.5 % to 4.5 % raised hardness from 0.056 N to 0.391 N, and decreased TSI from 0.83 to <0.15, indicating substantial enhancement in gel strength and stability. Rheological evaluations revealed that all bigels exhibited shear-thinning behavior, with BW-based bigels showing stronger viscoelastic properties than SIT-based ones. Thermal and crystallization studies further demonstrated that beeswax contributed to higher crystallinity, more thermally stable polymorphs, and BW-bigels showed a steep SFC decline from 20 °C to 40 °C, enhancing oral meltability while maintaining structure at refrigeration temperatures. Overall, beeswax showed greater efficacy than β-sitosterol in improving the structural and functional characteristics of ILBs, supporting its potential as a fat-structuring component in the development of reduced-fat spreadable systems. Sensory studies are needed to validate consumer acceptance in margarine-like spreadable products. Further studies are warranted to evaluate product stability and sensory attributes in real food applications.
研究领域:
食品科学
·
软物质物理
·
功能食品
·
脂质结构
·
食品胶体
✓ 已验证
产品关联
DOI
高影响因子
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF BIOLOGICAL MACROMOLECULES
·
2024
·
IF 7.7
Qinbo Jiang,Kaini Chen,Zhe Cai,Yang Li,Hui Zhang
Algal proteins are an emerging source of functional foods. Herein, Chlorella pyrenoidosa protein (CPP)/xanthan gum-based hydrogels (HG) and beeswax-gelled oleogels (OG) are adopted to fabricate bigels. The phase inversion of bigels can be regulated by the ratio of OG and HG: As the OG increased, bigels turn from OG-in-HG (OG/HG) to a semicontinuous state and then HG-in-OG (HG/OG). In OG/HG bigels (OG ≤ 50 %), hydrophilic CPP acts as the emulsifier at the interface of OG and HG, while beeswax emulsifies the system in HG/OG bigels (OG = 80 %). A semicontinuous bigel appears during the transition between HG/OG and OG/HG. The increase of OG can enhance the viscoelasticity, hardness, adhesiveness, chewiness, and thermal stability. OG/HG bigels exhibit stronger thixotropic recovery and oil-holding capacity than HG/OG bigels. In the in-vitro digestion and food 3D printing, the high specific surface area and the highest thixotropic recovery caused by the emulsion structure of the OG/HG bigel (OG = 50 %) are conducive to the release of free fatty acids and molding of 3D-printed objects, respectively. This study provides a new approach to structure the gelled water-oil system with CPP and helps to develop edible algal proteins-based multiphase systems in food engineering or pharmacy.
研究领域:
食品科学
·
生物技术
·
材料科学
✓ 已验证
产品关联
DOI
PubMed
高影响因子
FOOD HYDROCOLLOIDS
·
2024
·
IF 11
Qianzhu Lin,Xiaojing Li,David Julian McClements,Zhengyu Jin,Chao Qiu,Guanghua Li
Oral delivery systems for nutrients and nutraceuticals are required for personalized nutrition applications. In some applications, these delivery systems need to encapsulate both hydrophilic and hydrophobic bioactive agents. In this study, bigel beads (2 mm) were prepared using pea protein (PP) and sodium alginate (SA) to form the hydrogel phase, and glyceryl monostearate and soybean oil to form the oleogel phase. The hydrogel phase was crosslinked by using Ca 2+ ions to form electrostatic bridges between the alginate molecules. The bigel beads had an oil-in-water type structure consisting of an oleogel dispersed phase within a hydrogel continuous phase. These beads were used to encapsulate and control the release of model hydrophobic (curcumin) and hydrophilic (epigallocatechin gallate) nutraceuticals. The textural and microstructural characteristics of the bigel beads were evaluated by dynamic shear rheology, textural profile analysis, cryo-electron microscopy, and fluorescence confocal microscopy. As the concentration of SA increasing from 0.2 to 1.0%, the hardness of bigel beads increased from 306.75 g to 792.40 g. In vitro digestion experiments showed that most of the nutraceuticals were released in the small intestine, rather than the stomach. Nutraceutical release could be controlled by manipulating bead composition, with the extent of nutraceutical release decreasing with increasing alginate concentration. The bigel beads developed in this study could be used as easy-to-swallow carriers for the controlled release of hydrophilic and hydrophobic bioactive ingredients. These kinds of products may be especially useful for people with dysphagia.
研究领域:
食品科学
·
营养学
·
药剂学
✓ 已验证
产品关联
DOI
高影响因子
Food Chemistry-X
·
2025
·
IF 8.2
Lijuan Han,Shiqi Zhang,Yingxin Chen,Lingzhi Su,Junbo He,Weinong Zhang
Bigels were prepared from ethyl cellulose oleogels and binary hydrogels containing konjac glucomannan (KGM) and two homologous proteins: casein (CS) and whey protein isolate (WPI). An increase in CS concentration led to an initial enhancement, followed by a reduction in the yield stress and hardness of the bigels. Conversely, variations in WPI concentration did not have a significant effect on these properties. As protein concentration increased, WPI-based bigels maintained the hydrogel-in-oleogel structure, whereas CS-based bigels exhibited phase inversion. The change in binary hydrogels was responsible for the structural evolution and property differences in bigels. Both CS–KGM and WPI–KGM binary hydrogels played a role in stabilizing the droplets and decreasing interfacial tension. Notably, CS–KGM mixtures demonstrated superior emulsification performance compared to WPI–KGM mixtures. By changing the type and concentrations of proteins used, different emulsification abilities can be achieved in hydrogel solutions, which in turn control the structural properties of the corresponding bigels.
研究领域:
食品科学
·
材料科学
·
高分子科学
·
胶体与界面科学
✓ 已验证
产品关联
DOI
PubMed
高影响因子
危险品化学品经营许可证（带存储）