The scaling up of the pressurized hot water flow-through extraction system for sawdust by a factor of 6000.

Naturally associated lignin residues in GGM act as vehicles for anchoring these hemicelluloses into the oil droplet interface and further enable superior stabilization of emulsions. By adjusting the isolation method of GGM regarding their phenolic profile, their functionalities, especially interfacial behavior, can be altered. Retaining the native interactions of GGM and phenolic residues is suggested for efficient physical stabilization and extended protection against lipid oxidation. The results can be widely applied as guidelines in tailoring natural or synthetic amphiphilic compounds for interfacial stabilization.

Materials manufacturing industries seek efficient, economic, and sustainable compounds for stabilizing dispersed systems such as emulsions. In this study, novel, abundant biobased hydrocolloids spruce galactoglucomannans (GGM) and birch glucuronoxylans (GX) were obtained from a forestry biorefining process and characterized as versatile stabilizers of rapeseed oil-in-water emulsions. For the first time, GGM and GX isolated by pressurized hot water extraction (PHWE) of spruce and birch saw meal, respectively, were studied in emulsions. The PHWE wood hemicelluloses-polysaccharides with relatively low molar mass-facilitated the formation of emulsions with small average droplet size and efficiently prevented droplet coalescence. GGM and GX lowered the surface tension of emulsions' oil-water interface and increased the viscosity of the continuous phase. However, viscosity of the wood hemicellulose-based systems was low compared to that of commercial polymeric stabilizers. GGM-stabilized emulsions with varying oil volume fractions were characterized in terms of their rheological properties, including large amplitude oscillation shear (LAOS) measurements, and compared to emulsions prepared with a classical small-molecular surfactant, Tween20. The physical emulsion stabilization mechanisms of GGM and GX are suggested as steric repulsion assisted by Pickering-type stabilization. Wood hemicelluloses have potential as highly promising future bioproducts for versatile industrial applications involving colloidal systems and soft materials.

Wood hemicelluloses have an excellent capacity to form and stabilize oil-in-water emulsions. Galactoglucomannans (GGM) from spruce and glucuronoxylans (GX) from birch provide multifunctional protection against physical breakdown and lipid oxidation in emulsions. Phenolic residues, coextracted with hemicelluloses using the pressurized hot water (PHWE) process, seem to further enhance emulsion stability. According to hypothesis, phenolic residues associated with hemicelluloses deliver and anchor hemicelluloses at the emulsion interface. This study is the first to characterize the structure of the phenolic residues in both GGM-and GX-rich wood extracts and their role in the stabilization of emulsions. PHWE GGM and GX were fractionated by centrifugation to obtain concentrated phenolic residues as one fraction (GGM-phe and GX-phe) and partially purified hemicelluloses as the other fraction (GGM-pur and GX-pur). To evaluate the role of each fraction in terms of physical and oxidative stabilization, rapeseed oil-in-water emulsions were prepared using GGM, GX, GGM-pur, and GX-pur as stabilizers. Changes in droplet-size distribution and peroxide values were measured during a 3-month accelerated storage test. The results for fresh emulsions indicated that the phenolic-rich fractions in hemicelluloses take part in the formation of emulsions. Furthermore, results from the accelerated storage test indicated that phenolic structures improve the long-term physical stability of emulsions. According to measured peroxide values, all hemicelluloses examined inhibited lipid oxidation in emulsions, GX being the most effective. This indicates that phenolic residues associated with hemicelluloses act as antioxidants in emulsions. According to chemical characterization using complementary methods, the phenolic fractions, GGM-phe and GX-phe, were composed mainly of lignin. Furthermore, the total carbohydrate content of the phenolic fractions was clearly lower compared to the starting hemicelluloses GGM and GX, and the purified fractions GGM-pur and GX-pur. Apparently, the phenolic structures were enriched in the GGM-phe and GX-phe fractions, which was confirmed by NMR spectroscopy as well as by other characterization methods. The frequency of the main bonding pattern in lignins, the β-O-4 structure, was clearly very high, suggesting that extracted lignin remains in native form. Furthermore, the lignin carbohydrate complex of γ-ester type was found, which could explain the excellent stabilizing properties of PHWE hemicelluloses in emulsions.

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