Gels: Forming Behaviors, Mechanisms, and Food Applications
A special issue of Gels (ISSN 2310-2861). This special issue belongs to the section "Gel Processing and Engineering".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 1 June 2026 | Viewed by 59
Special Issue Editors
Interests: polymer composites; structure characterization; green processes for biopolymers; biopolymer films and coatings; biopolymer hydrogels; interactions between active ingredients in food; food nutrient composition; functional activity
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
This Special Issue is dedicated to researchers who are committed to exploring advanced functional gel systems (including hydrogels, oil gels, aerogels, and emulsion gels) based on food-derived biomacromolecules (such as polysaccharides, proteins, and lipids). Food gels construct three-dimensional networks through physical or chemical cross-linking mechanisms, which could effectively trap water, oil, or air, and can precisely control the texture, rheological properties (such as fracture strain and viscoelasticity), stability (physical and oxidative stability), and nutrient-/flavor-release behavior of foods. This Special Issue discusses key carriers for constructing salt reduction strategies (such as improving salty taste perception efficiency through microstructure), solving chewing and swallowing difficulties (such as developing elderly-friendly foods with specific rheological properties), and designing clean label products. Moreover, it also shows the great potential of efficient delivery and targeted release of food-derived bioactive ingredients (such as probiotics, vitamins, polyphenols, and curcumin) and nutritional molecules. In addition, functionalized gel materials for green biodegradable food packaging, edible fresh-keeping coatings, and scaffolds can be prepared by regulating gel formation technologies (such as 3D/4D printing, stimulus-responsive design, and multi-component composites). The original and innovative research studies on the innovation of gel sources (development of new gelling agents), structure (multi-scale structural characterization), gel function realization (such as controlled release, texture design, nutritional fortification, sensory optimization, etc.), and application scenario expansion (salt and fat reduction, elderly-friendly food, active delivery, smart packaging, etc.) are collected and focused on in this Special Issue.
This Special Issue aims to collect the results of the structural and property changes of gels during food processing ; explore application areas (especially in response to global health and nutrition challenges, such as salt reduction, aging nutrition, precision nutrition, etc.); and create new development opportunities for the field of food gel science. We welcome scientists to submit high-quality manuscripts (not limited to the above-mentioned topics). We look forward to these innovative works, as they will have a profound impact on the basic research and industrial application of food gels.
Dr. Xu Lu
Prof. Dr. Zebin Guo
Guest Editors
Manuscript Submission Information
Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.
Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Gels is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.
Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2100 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.
Keywords
- food gels
- mechanism
- texture design
- delivery systems
- salt reduction strategies
- food for the elderly
- clean labels
- bioavailability
- 3D printing
- sensory intelligence
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