Design of high‐oleic palm oil nanoemulsions suitable for drying in refractance window™

Nanoencapsulation is a technique in which high‐interest lipids are protected. Refractance Window™ is a novel drying technique designed mainly to convert fruit puree into powder, flakes, or concentrates. Thus, in this work we study the effect of wall materials on the moisture content and break distance of flakes obtained by RW from emulsions of high‐oleic palm oil, also, we study the physical properties of the optimal nanoemulsions. High whey concentrations originate flakes with low moisture content and high break distance. Microfluidization pressure significantly affected droplet size, polydispersity index, zeta potential, and surface tension of the optimal nanoemulsions. In this sense, increasing the pressure decreased size and PdI, and increased ζ and ST. To obtain nanoemulsions suitable for drying in RW, high whey concentrations and high microfluidization pressures should be used to promote the stability of nanoemulsions in order to obtain flakes with high break distance and low moisture contents. Novelty Impact Statement High‐oleic palm oil nanoemulsions are an excellent choice for producing flakes using the refractive window technique. This type of dry flakes allows the incorporation of HOPO into products of the food industry since its production process involves the use of low temperatures, protecting the thermolabile compounds present in this oil, and adding nutritional value to the food product.