Monday, 3 June 2013

Importance Of Nano Encapsulation In Many Industries Today

By Michelle Howe


Nano encapsulation is a method used in material coating that is now quite popular in most industries. This process has become significant in food ingredient production where food flavors are the most common as well. Nano encapsulation is used in volatile bioactives for carbonless copy paper, food, adhesives, textiles, phase change materials, and many more.

There have been numerous techniques being developed for micro-encapsulation where pan coating, centrifugal extrusion and spray drying are the most popular. Pan coating is widely used in pharmaceuticals. This is the oldest procedure in creating tiny, coated tablets in which particles are brought down in a pan as the coating of materials is being applied.

Centrifugal extrusion is often performed in liquid properties. In this technique, the liquid substance is going to be surrounded by a wall solution. This method is ideal in making particles that no greater than 2,000 micrometers. Through the Rayleigh instability, liquid jet moves through the air. As it breaks down into tiny pieces, droplets will soon be formed. This process is crucial not only for liquid substances but for slurry cement slurry too.

In spray drying, this technique is done through dissolving or suspending active materials into a polymer solution. This is good for materials that constantly undergo changes as this technique only has short contact period in the dryer. Experts also find this economical that is why many industrial laboratories have been implementing the process.

Encapsulation is done not only by using physical properties. The chemical techniques in encapsulation can yield much more particle dispersions which can be great for core shell capsule and oil in water emulsion. These can be done through interfacial polycondensation, interfacial cross linking, in situ polymerization and matrix polymerization.

In the interfacial polycondensation process, two reactants of condensation polymers meet to react rapidly in the interface. This technique comes from the Schotten-Baumann reaction, a method of harmonizing amides and amines. A base through neutralized acids forms during the reaction.

Interfacial cross-linking comes from interfacial polycondensation. This method was developed so as to avoid toxic diamines in pharmaceutical and cosmetic applications. In this process, a tiny bifunctional monomer with active hydrogen atoms will be replaced with a certain biosourced polymer just like protein. During the reaction, the acid chloride will react with various functional groups that lead to the creation of a membrane. This is as versatile as the microcapsules' properties.

In situ polymerization, encapsulations of cellulose fibers are done through polyethylene. The coating thickness using the process is around 0.2 micrometer. It creates uniform coatings even in a sharp projection. Protein present during the chemical reaction becomes the membrane of a coated material that could be much more resistant than the coatings obtained using the interfacial polycondensation.

Furthermore, matrix polymerization in nano encapsulation comes from the spray drying method. In this process, particles will be formed through the evaporation of solvents from matrix materials. More often than not, apparent solidification of matrix are caused by the distinctive changes of the process.




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