Preparation of Water-Soluble Formulations of Hydrophobic Active Compounds by Emulsion Template Processes

ÁNGEL MARTíN; ESTHER DE PAZ; FACUNDO MATTEA; MARíA JOSé COCERO

Supercritical Fluid Nanotechnology: Advances and Applications in Composites and Hybrid Nanomaterials

Pan Stanford

Año: 2015; p. 159 - 232

The use of many active compounds of interest for nutraceutical and pharmaceutical applications is restricted by low solubility of these compounds in water, which contributes to low bioavailability, and makes it difficult to add these compounds to beverages or other water-based products. Thus, there is great interest in the development of water-soluble formulations of these compounds such as micellar solutions or other colloidal dispersions. Emulsion techniques have been particularly useful for the production of these formulations, since the emulsion can provide a template for the morphology of the final product. This chapter presents the main techniques used for this purpose, starting with conventional emulsion evaporation and solvent displacement methods, and presenting recent developments, including novel emulsification techniques such as ultrasound emulsification and high-pressure homogenization, in the intensification of the process by increase in throughput and reduction of processing time through the processing of pressurized emulsions, and the application of supercritical fluids for extraction and antisolvent precipitation from emulsions. Finally, the application of several of these techniques for the preparation of water-soluble â-carotene formulations for application as natural colorant is presented as a case study.