Influence of concentration and temperature on the flow behavior of oil‐in‐water emulsions stabilized by sucrose palmitate

Abstract

Abstract To study the influence that concentration and temperature exert on the viscous behavior of emulsions stabilized by a sucrose ester (SE) of high hydrophilic‐lipophilic balance (HLB), flow curves and droplet size distributions were determined. Flow curves of presheared emulsions always exhibited a shear‐thinning behavior at intermediate shear rates, a tendency to a limiting viscosity at high shear rates, and a metastable region at low rates. This behavior can be fitted to a Carreau model. Both SE and oil concentrations increase emulsion viscosity as a result of a more structured system with a lower droplet size and polydispersity. An increase in temperature usually leads to a decrease in emulsion viscosity. However, at high oil concentration, coalescence and phase separation take place at low temperature. On the other hand, at high temperature, droplet bursting due to shear forces, leading to an increase in viscosity, may result. Despite the strong structural breakdown caused by steady shear, master flow curves may be obtained by using superposition methods.