Encapsulation of Nerol Oil in Polycaprolactone Polymer and Stability Evaluation

• Published in: Journal of polymers and the environment Vol. 30; no. 1; pp. 125 - 135
• Main Authors: Fagundes, Pâmela, Carniel, Thaís Karoline, Hall, Monique Canal, Colpani, Gustavo Lopes, Silva, Luciano Luiz, Zanetti, Micheli, de Mello, Josiane Maria Muneron, Dalcanton, Francieli, Fiori, Márcio Antônio
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: New York Springer US 2022; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Antimicrobial agents; Chemistry; Chemistry and Materials Science; Encapsulation; Environmental Chemistry; Environmental Engineering/Biotechnology; Essential oils; Evaporation; Flocculation; Industrial applications; Industrial Chemistry/Chemical Engineering; Materials Science; Microparticles; Original Paper; Particle size; Polycaprolactone; Polymer Sciences; Polymers; Stability analysis; Zeta potential; Nerol oil; PCL capsules; Encapsulation of natural oil; Antimicrobial capsules of PCL-Nerol
• ISSN: 1566-2543; 1572-8919
• DOI: 10.1007/s10924-021-02176-5

The objective of this study was to obtain and characterize Nerol essential oil encapsulated in PCL. The miniemulsion and solvent evaporation method was used, resulting in PCL-Nerol capsules bonded by a physical interaction, with a dispersity index of 0.101, a particle size of 0.14 µm, and an encapsulation efficiency of 94.27%. In addition, the temperature at which the oil degraded could be observed to increase by 100 °C when it is encapsulated in PCL, revealing this polymer's capacity in working as an encapsulating agent. The PCL-Nerol capsules in suspension proved to be stable for 60 days regarding the pH of the suspensions, mean particle size, dispersity index, zeta potential and the encapsulation efficiency, not presenting clusters and flocculation. The results are considered satisfactory and important for the future industrial applications of the obtained microparticles.