STORAGE STABILITY AND PHYSICOCHEMICAL PROPERTIES OF PASSION FRUIT JUICE MICROCAPSULES BY SPRAY-DRYING

The aim of this work was to microencapsulate passion fruit juice (PFJ) by spray-drying in two different biopolymers blends: Gum Arabic-mesquite gum-maltodextrin DE-10 (GA17-MG66-MD17 and GA17-MG-17-MD66), yielding the microcapsules M(GA17-MG66-MD17) and M(GA17-MG17-MD66). The spray-dried passion fruit microcapsules were analyzed for physicochemical properties (moisture content, water activity, powder particle size), quality properties (hygroscopicity, dispersibility, rehydration time), and reconstituted product properties (total color change and vitamin C retention). The minimum integral entropy of the microcapsules was determined at 25, 35, and 40 degrees C, and the resulting water activities (a(w)) were 0.447, 0.505, 0.629 for M(GA17-MG66-MD17) and 0.383, 0.414, 0.605 for M(GA17-MG17-MD66), respectively. These temperatures-a(w) sets were considered as the most adequate conditions for achieving maximum storage stability of the microcapsules. The best vitamin C retention level occurred at 25 degrees C, aw = 0.447 for M(GA17-MG66-MD17), and at 25 degrees C, a(w) = 0.383 for M(GA17-MG17-MD66).