Based on a brief introduction, let us understand what emulsifiers are. As we well know, water and oil do not mix. However, introducing an emulsifier it will make it possible for water and oil to become finely dispersed in each other, creating a homogenous and smooth emulsion. Therefore emulsifiers are substances that have both the water-loving end also known as hydrophilic and the oil-loving end called hydrophobic. This can make oil and water mix. These emulsifiers belong to a group of compounds’ called surface-active agents or surfactants which are further classified as ionic or nonionic.
Non-ionic emulsifiers- are the type of emulsifier which do not dissociate in water due to the presence of covalent bonds within their structures. On the other hand, Ionic emulsifiers may further be classified as anionic or cationic and are the type that is easily ionized in water. Besides non-ionic and ionic there are other emulsifiers know as amphoteric emulsifiers for example the lecithin which contains both anionic and cationic groups and their surface-active properties are pH-dependent (Stampfli 1995).
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Emulsifiers are commonly known for their cleaning properties in soap/detergent. However, in this paper we shall be looking at other areas where emulsifiers are essential applied. Besides being used in the soap/detergent industry, emulsifiers are also commonly used in bakery products to improve bread quality and dough handling characteristics. The commonly used emulsifier includes the lecithin, which are known as dough improvers, and monoacylglycerols, which are applied as ant staling agents or crumb softeners.
Lecithin is a group of naturally occurring, complex phospholipids. They are known to increase the dough gas retention to a degree and contribute to crust formation. The main commercial source of lecithin is plant seed especially the soybean.
Emulsifiers such as lecithin’s are essential for the baking process and have been applied to baking for a long period (Miyamoto 2005). Even though the technique of dough strengthening due to emulsifiers is not fully exploited (Stampfli 1995). Emulsifiers conferred strength to wheat dough due to the complex formation with gluten proteins (Miyamoto 2005; Goméz et al. 2004). The emulsifier may bind to the protein hydrophobic surface promoting aggregation of gluten proteins in dough which results to a better texture and increased volume of the bread. Based on the ability of polar emulsifiers to form liquid–crystalline phases in water, it is associated with gliadin which contributes to dough elasticity allowing gas cell to expand, thus resulting in an increased volume of baked food (Ribotta et al. 2008). Fresh bread as a product gets spoilt easily and during its storage a number of chemical and physical reactions occur. As a result of these reactions, bread quality drops gradually as it loses its crispiness and freshness while crumb firmness and rigidity increase. This shows that emulsifiers inhibit the firming of the crumb, associated with staling. Their effect on retardation of baked goods staling has been proposed to result from their interaction with starch retarding the retro gradation process, and their blocking of moisture migration between gluten and starch which prevents starch from taking up water. Emulsifiers can also have an effect on the moisture distribution between the protein and starch. A decrease in the amount of water absorbed by the starch makes more water viable for hydration of the gluten, and this too is also a contributing factor to staling retarding.
In conclusion, emulsifiers are important in our daily live activities and need to be embraced and utilized correctly and efficiently. Since so many substances need a linkage between each other and in most cases emulsifiers are not recognized as the link.
References
Gómez M, Real S, Rosell C, Ronda F, Blanco C, Caballero P (2004) Eur. Food Res. Technol. A 219: 145-150
Miyamoto Y, Sakamoto M, Maeda T, Morita N (2005) Food Sci. Technol. Res. 11: 19-25
Ribotta PD, Pérez GT, Añón MC, León AE (2008) Food Bioprocess Technol. (in press).
Stampfli L, Nersten B (1995) Food Chem. 52: 353–360
