On the formation of granular crystals in fat blends containing palm oil

Abstract

The use of palm oil for plastic fats has encountered serious difficulty due to its crystallization properties, one of which is the formation of granular crystals. The granular crystals cause sandy teste and inhomogeneity of fat crystal morphology of end products. In the present study, we analyzed the formation process of these granular crystals. Chemical and physical analyses for triacylglycerol (TAG) compositions, polymorphism and melting points of the granular crystals led to the conclusion that the granular crystals are of the most stable polymorph, β 1 , of POP (1,3‐dipalmitoyl 2‐oleoyl glycerol) with triple chainlength fat blend consisting of POP and reapeseed oil. The following characteristics of β 1 polymorph of POP contribute to the formation of granular crystals in fat blends containing palm oil: (i) β 1 reveals well‐defined plate‐like crystal morphology, which grows easily into the bulky granular from; (ii) the triple chainlength structure of POP has a tendency to segregate and does not from a solid solution together with other TAGs.