Development of High-Stability Avocado Oil Powder via Spray Drying and Wall Material Engineering

Abstract

Virgin avocado oil, a bioactive compound rich in monounsaturated fatty acids and antioxidants, is highly susceptible to oxidative degradation, which limits its industrial applications. This study investigated the microencapsulation of virgin avocado oil via spray drying to enhance its stability. We formulated oil-in-water (O/W) emulsions using a ternary blend of maltodextrin (MD), gum Arabic (GA), and guar gum (GG) as the wall material. The influence of the wall material composition on the physicochemical properties of the resulting avocado oil powder was evaluated. Emulsions were homogenized and then spray-dried at an inlet temperature of 150°C. An optimized wall material ratio of 59% MD, 40% GA, and 1% GG yielded a high production yield (78.72%) and an encapsulation efficiency of 51.25%. The microcapsules exhibited a low water activity (0.153) and moisture content (2.83%), which are critical for powder stability. The powder also demonstrated good solubility (68.37%) and wettability (4.71 s). Morphological analysis revealed semi-spherical microcapsules with the characteristic surface indentations of spray-dried powders. These findings demonstrate that a balanced blend of MD, GA, and GG can effectively encapsulate avocado oil, producing a stable powder with potential for use as a functional ingredient in the food industry. Future work should focus on validating the long-term oxidative stability of the powder.