In this study, we formulated and stabilized oil-in-water nanoemulsions using a crude extract from argan press-cake as sole emulsifier. Various extracts from argan press-cake were prepared in order to select the most surface-active one(s) foreseeing emulsions preparation. Fifty percent (v/v) ethanolic extract reduced the interfacial tension to a minimum value at both MCT oil and soybean oil interfaces (12.7 and 10.5 mN m respectively). This extract was also effective at producing fine emulsions with small droplet sizes (d < 115 nm) and good physical stability using different oils such as soybean oil, MCT oil and fish oil and at conventional homogenization conditions (100 MPa for 4 passes). On the other hand, the emulsions were very sensitive to NaCl addition (≥25 mM) and to acidic pH (<3) indicating that the main stabilization mechanism is electrostatic, likely due to the presence of surface-active compounds with ionizable groups such as saponins.
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