Ultra-stable linalool/water Pickering emulsions: A combined experimental and simulation study

Linalool has potential applications in food and pharmaceutical industry due to its natural and safe fragrance, while its poor aqueous dispersion and high volatility cause the difficulty in preparation and loss in production. To tackle these problems, herein the ultra-stable linalool/water Pickering emulsions stabilized by β-cyclodextrin (β-CD) were successfully prepared through the combination of experiment and molecular dynamics (MD) simulation. Subsequently, the conditions (the ratio of oil to water and β-CD concentration) by using the ultrasonic shear emulsification method in the preparation of Pickering emulsions were evaluated and optimized. The stabilization mechanisms of the linalool/water Pickering emulsions were simultaneously explored by using molecular dynamics (MD) simulation. The calculated results showed that hydrogen bonds (HBs) possessed a strong interaction, which improved the dispersion of emulsion droplets and finally allowed the emulsions to remain stable for a long time. Citral was added to the linalool to improve the stability of Pickering emulsions to 90 days based on this HBs stabilization mechanism. Finally, the above HBs stabilization mechanism was verified by the effect of temperatures. This study not only provided ultra-stable linalool/water Pickering emulsions and revealed their stabilization mechanism but also provided a reference for the emulsification of Pickering emulsions through the HBs.