US 6,387,301 B1 · Method of producing solid fatty microspheres

Method of producing solid fatty microspheres

AssigneesJapan as represented by Director of National Food Research Institute, Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, Bio-oriented Technology Research Advancement Institution

InventorsMitsutoshi Nakajima, Yuji Kikuchi, Hiroshi Nabetani, Jihong Tong, Minoru Seki, Shinji Sugiura

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Abstract

A method to efficiently and continuously produce microspheres of natural oils and fats having a high melting point, the average particle diameter of which is in dozens of μm and is uniform, comprising the steps of heating oils and fats having a high melting point to a temperature greater than the melting point thereof to liquify same holding the oils and fats in a liquid state, forming a dispersed phase of the liquid oils and fats, pressurizing the dispersed phase and forming emulsions by dispersing the dispersed phase into a continuous phase via a plurality of microchannels, and isolating microspheres of the oils and fats having a high melting point by removing the continuous phase from the emulsions.

Claims15

Dependent claims

A method of producing solid fatty microspheres, comprising the following steps:

heating oils and fats having a high melting point to a temperature greater than the melting point thereof to liquify same, holding said oils and fats in a liquid state and forming a dispersed phase of the liquid oils and fats;
pressurizing the dispersed phase and forming emulsions by dispersing said dispersed phase into a continuous phase via a plurality of microchannels having a predetermined width;
producing solid microspheres of said oils and fats in suspension by cooling and thus solidifying said emulsions;
and
isolating said solid microspheres by removing said continuous phase from said suspension.

2 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.