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Gels
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Food Gels: Gelling Process and Innovative Applications
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Food Gels: Gelling Process and Innovative Applications

A special issue of Gels (ISSN 2310-2861). This special issue belongs to the section "Gel Applications".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 20 May 2025 | Viewed by 5866

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Xinyu Sun

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
College of Food Science and Technology, Henan Agricultural University, Zhengzhou 450002, China
Interests: food-derived biological macromolecules; hydrogels; coatings; films; food preservation; colloid delivery system

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

This special issue is dedicated to food researchers to develop food derived bio-macromolecules based gels with advanced functions for food preservation, tissue engineering and other fields.

Gels are defined as polymeric materials capable of incorporating large amounts of water (hydrogels), air (aerogels) or oil (oleogels) in their three-dimensional networks, playing a critical role in modern food design, such as in controlling stability, rheological and organoleptic properties. Food gel is a kind of colloidal material which is made by physical or chemical methods with food-derived bio-macromolecule polymers as the gelling matrix. Food gels show good application prospects in the fields of food derived bioactive components and drug molecular delivery. In addition, food gel can be prepared into green biodegradable food packaging films or edible fresh-keeping coatings through regulation, film forming technology, etc. Gels publishes original and innovative research concerned with the characterisation, functional properties and applications of gel materials in food products. The key focus of the research should be on the gel source, structure fabrication, gel function, and gel applications. This special issue aims to collect original researches on the development of new technology for food gel preparation, functionalization, and expansion of new application fields, so as to create new opportunities for the development of food gels in the era of great nutrition and health. We welcome submissions in this exciting field and look forward to learning what these new works will provide.

Dr. Xinyu Sun
Guest Editor

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

  • hydrogel
  • packaging films
  • edible coatings
  • emulsions
  • bio-functionalization
  • structure and performance regulation
  • biomaterials

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Further information on MDPI's Special Issue policies can be found here.

Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

25 pages, 5607 KiB  
Article
Hydroxypropyl Cellulose Polymers as Efficient Emulsion Stabilizers: The Effect of Molecular Weight and Overlap Concentration
by Diana Cholakova, Krastina Tsvetkova, Viara Yordanova, Kristina Rusanova, Nikolai Denkov and Slavka Tcholakova
Gels 2025, 11(2), 113; https://doi.org/10.3390/gels11020113 - 5 Feb 2025
Viewed by 977
Abstract
Hydroxypropyl cellulose (HPC) is a non-digestible water-soluble polysaccharide used in various food, cosmetic, and pharmaceutical applications. In the current study, the aqueous solutions of six HPC grades, with molecular mass ranging from 40 to 870 kDa, were characterized with respect to their precipitation [...] Read more.
Hydroxypropyl cellulose (HPC) is a non-digestible water-soluble polysaccharide used in various food, cosmetic, and pharmaceutical applications. In the current study, the aqueous solutions of six HPC grades, with molecular mass ranging from 40 to 870 kDa, were characterized with respect to their precipitation temperatures, interfacial tensions (IFTs), rheological properties and emulsifying and stabilization ability in palm (PO) and sunflower (SFO) oil emulsions. The main conclusions from the obtained results are as follows: (1) Emulsion drop size follows a master curve as a function of HPC concentration for all studied polymers, indicating that polymer molecular mass and solution viscosity have a secondary effect, while the primary effect is the fraction of surface-active molecules, estimated to be around 1–2% for all polymers. (2) Stable emulsions were obtained only with HPC polymers with Mw ≥ 400 kDa at concentrations approximately 3.5 times higher than the critical overlap concentration, c*. At PO concentrations beyond 40 wt. % or when the temperature was 25 °C, these emulsions appeared as highly viscous liquids or non-flowing gels. (3) HPC polymers with Mw < 90 kDa were unable to form stable emulsions, as the surface-active molecules cannot provide steric stabilization even at c ≳ 4–5 c*, resulting in drop creaming and coalescence during storage. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Food Gels: Gelling Process and Innovative Applications)
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14 pages, 6328 KiB  
Article
Rheological and Textural Investigation to Design Film for Packaging from Potato Peel Waste
by Olga Mileti, Noemi Baldino, Vittoria Marchio, Francesca R. Lupi and Domenico Gabriele
Gels 2024, 10(11), 681; https://doi.org/10.3390/gels10110681 - 23 Oct 2024
Viewed by 1222
Abstract
The recovery of potato waste for circular-economy purposes is a growing area of industrial research. This waste, rich in nutrients and potential for reuse, can be a valuable source of starch for packaging applications. Rheology plays a crucial role in characterizing film-forming solutions [...] Read more.
The recovery of potato waste for circular-economy purposes is a growing area of industrial research. This waste, rich in nutrients and potential for reuse, can be a valuable source of starch for packaging applications. Rheology plays a crucial role in characterizing film-forming solutions before casting. In this work, packaging film was prepared from potato waste using rheological information to formulate the film-forming solution. To this aim, rheological measurements were carried out on starch/glycerol-only samples, and the data obtained were used to optimize the formulation from the waste. The polyphenol content of the peels was analyzed, and the resulting films were comprehensively characterized. This included assessments of color, extensibility, Fourier-transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy, surface microscopy, and contact angle. Polyphenol-loaded films, suitable for packaging applications, were developed from potato waste. These films exhibited distinct properties compared to those made with pure starch, including an improved wettability of about 75° for the best sample and a high elastic modulus of about 36 MPa, which reduces the deformability but enhances the resistance against the stress. Through rheological studies, we were able to design films from potato peel waste. These films demonstrated promising mechanical performance. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Food Gels: Gelling Process and Innovative Applications)
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17 pages, 2096 KiB  
Article
Fabrication and Characterization of Taro (Colocasia esculenta)-Mucilage-Based Nanohydrogel for Shelf-Life Extension of Fresh-Cut Apples
by Mansuri M. Tosif, Aarti Bains, Kandi Sridhar, Baskaran Stephen Inbaraj, Nemat Ali, Praveen Kumar Dikkala, Ankur Kumar, Prince Chawla and Minaxi Sharma
Gels 2024, 10(2), 95; https://doi.org/10.3390/gels10020095 - 25 Jan 2024
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 2756
Abstract
Taro mucilage is a cost-effective, eco-friendly, and water-soluble edible viscous polysaccharide, which possesses diverse techno-functional properties including gelling and anti-microbial. Therefore, the objective of this study was to formulate and evaluate the efficacy of taro mucilage nanohydrogel for the shelf-life enhancement of fresh-cut [...] Read more.
Taro mucilage is a cost-effective, eco-friendly, and water-soluble edible viscous polysaccharide, which possesses diverse techno-functional properties including gelling and anti-microbial. Therefore, the objective of this study was to formulate and evaluate the efficacy of taro mucilage nanohydrogel for the shelf-life enhancement of fresh-cut apples. Taro mucilage was extracted using cold water extraction, and the yield of mucilage was found to be 2.95 ± 0.35% on a dry basis. Different concentrations of mucilage (1, 2, 3, 4, and 5%) were used to formulate the nanohydrogel. A smaller droplet size of 175.61 ± 0.92 nm was observed at 3% mucilage, with a zeta potential of −30.25 ± 0.94 mV. Moreover, FTIR data of nanohydrogel revealed the functional groups of various sugars, uronic acids, and proteins. Thermal analysis of nanohydrogel exhibited weight loss in three phases, and maximum weight loss occurred from 110.25 °C to 324.27 °C (65.16%). Nanohydrogel showed shear-thinning fluid or pseudo-plastic behavior. Coating treatment of nanohydrogel significantly reduced the weight loss of fresh-cut apples (8.72 ± 0.46%) as compared to the control sample (12.25 ± 0.78%) on the 10th day. In addition, minor changes were observed in the pH for both samples during the 10 days of storage. Titrable acidity of control fresh-cut apples measured 0.22 ± 0.05% on day 0, rising to 0.42 ± 0.03% on the 10th day, and for coated fresh-cut apples, it was observed to be 0.24 ± 0.07% on the 0th day and 0.36 ± 0.06% on 10th day, respectively. Furthermore, the total soluble solids (TSS) content of both control and coated fresh-cut apples measured on the 0th day was 11.85 ± 0.65% and 12.33 ± 0.92%, respectively. On the 10th day, these values were significantly increased (p < 0.05) to 16.38 ± 0.42% for the control and 14.26 ± 0.39% for the coated sliced apples, respectively. Nanohydrogel-coated fresh-cut apples retained antioxidant activity and vitamin C content as compared to the control sample. Taro mucilage nanohydrogel-based edible coating showed distinct anti-microbial activity against psychrotrophic, aerobic, and yeast molds. In summary, taro mucilage nanohydrogel can be used as a cost-effective natural coating material for the shelf-life enhancement or freshness maintenance of fresh-cut apples. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Food Gels: Gelling Process and Innovative Applications)
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