“All oat!” Optimizing the spray drying process for oat oil emulsions stabilized by cellulose nanocrystals and methylcellulose

Sep 17, 2026

Uploaded by Bulrr

Oil-filled powders are increasingly important across nutraceutical, cosmetic, and pharmaceutical sectors, yet oat oil remains difficult to stabilize because it readily oxidizes and has not been widely converted into a dry, reconstitutable powder. The study presents a bio-based encapsulation system using cellulose nanocrystals, food-grade methylcellulose, and tannic acid to stabilize oat oil emulsions. Spray drying conditions are optimized by DOE to maximize yield and quality, producing high oil loading, low moisture powders that rapidly reconstitute into stable emulsions.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages11

Reading Time28 min

AccessFree to download

Contents

Abstract

Keywords

Introduction

Carbohydrate Polymers 380 (2026) 125031 Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Carbohydrate Polymers journal [homepage:](homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/carbpol)[ www.elsevier.com/locate/carbpol](homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/carbpol) | “All oat!” Optimizing the spray drying process for oat oil emulsions stabilized by cellulose nanocrystals and methylcellulose
Megan G. Robertsa,1, Keanna Yu a,1, Marcus A. Johns b, Golshan Matinfara, Emily D. Cranston a,c,d,*
a Department of Wood Science, University of British Columbia, 2424 Main Mall, Vancouver, BC, V6T 1Z4, Canada b Mads Clausen Institute, University of Southern Denmark, Alison 2, Sønderborg, 6400, Denmark
c Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of British Columbia, 2424 Main Mall, Vancouver, BC, V6T 1Z3, Canada d UBC Bioproducts Institute, 2385 East Mall, Vancouver, BC, V6T 1Z4, Canada | | | | --- | --- | --- | | A R T I C L E I N F O | | A B S T R A C T | | Keywords:
Pickering emulsions Cellulose nanocrystals (CNCs) Spray drying
Oat oil
Tannic acid (TA)
Methylcellulose (MC) | | Oil-filled powders are increasingly important as nutraceutical use expands across food, cosmetic, and pharmaceutical sectors. Oat products are attractive for such applications due to their high antioxidant content, however oat oil (a grain refining by-product) remains challenging to stabilize because it readily oxidizes and thus has not previously been converted into a dry, reconstitutable powder. Here, we report a fully bio-based encapsulation platform in which oat oil is stabilized by cellulose nanocrystals (CNCs), food-grade methylcellulose, and tannic acid. Emulsion stability was evaluated for cold-pressed and solvent-extracted oat oils, with cold-pressed exhibiting superior stability. Spray drying was systemically optimized using a design-of-experiments (DOE) approach to quantify the effects of CNC content and processing parameters on powder yield and quality. The optimized powders achieved yields up to 82%, oil contents of 89%, moisture contents below 2%, and rapid reconstitution into stable emulsions, with CNC content identified as the dominant factor governing performance. CNCs were also extracted directly from oat hulls and applied to produce an “All Oat!” encapsulation system in which both stabilizer and oil come from a single biomass source. Overall, this work establishes a scalable, energy-efficient, carbohydrate-driven route to high-oil-loading powders that meets the growing demand for surfactant-free, sustainable formulations. | 1. Introduction The microencapsulation of edible oils to form oil-filled powders has become important, especially in the application of nutraceuticals (Bakryet al., 2016; Sandhya et al., 2023). Such oils are prone to oxidation and the detrimental effects of air and moisture on their quality has been demonstrated (Gonz´alez et al., 2016). Current spoilage prevention strategies have limitations: avoiding heat restricts processing routes and potential applications, reliance on the oil's antioxidant content reduces the desired health benefits (Laguerre et al., 2015), and sealed packaging requires oxygen free conditions which increases cost and complexity. Asa result, there remains a critical need for scalable, energy-efficient encapsulation strategies that protect oxidation-sensitive oils while minimizing additive use and processing constraints. Emerging Pickering emulsion strategies and subsequent encapsulation via drying is one method to circumvent these challenges (Massicotte & Cranston, 2022; Sandhya et al., 2023). On top of this, a recent push for surfactant-free products driven by environmental awareness has propelled the use of bio-based materials in place of petroleum-derived components for microencapsulation (McClements & Gumus, 2016). While numerous bio-based encapsulating agents have been used to stabilize oil-in-water emulsions (Fuchs et al., 2006), cellulose nanocrystals (CNCs) hav

FAQs

What problem does the study address regarding oat oil powders?

Oat oil oxidizes readily and has been challenging to convert into a dry, reconstitutable powder. The work targets stabilization while enabling dry powder formation.

How is oat oil encapsulated in the reported platform?

Oat oil is stabilized using cellulose nanocrystals, methylcellulose, and tannic acid, forming an emulsion that is then converted into powders by spray drying.

What method is used to optimize spray drying and improve powder quality?

A design-of-experiments (DOE) approach is used to quantify how cellulose nanocrystal content and processing parameters affect powder yield and quality.

Sep 17, 2026

Uploaded by Bulrr