Physical and chemical properties of roselle extract nanocapsule with inulin,
chitosan and maltodextrin as encapsulant
Roselle contains high phenolic compounds, mainly anthocyanins that are not stable with pH, metal ions, light exposure, temperature, oxygen, and enzymatic activity. The stability of phenolic compounds can be improved by nanoencapsulation. This research was aimed to evaluate the effect of inulin, inulin-chitosan and inulin-chitosan-maltodextrin with varying concentrations as encapsulants towards the physicochemical properties and encapsulation efficiency of nanocapsules product by spray drying. Roselle extract nanocapsules were prepared using various types and concentrations of encapsulants (inulin, inulin-chitosan and inulin-chitosan-maltodextrin). The solubility of nanocapsules ranged from 69.31 - 83.2%, while the hygroscopicity of nanocapsules was varied, approximately 17.89 - 23.79%. Nanocapsules moisture content was approximately 2.83 - 4.27%, while the total phenolic content of nanocapsules ranged from 6.74 - 13.41 mg GAE/g DW. The total anthocyanin of roselle extract nanocapsules was approximately 2.25 - 4.82 mg/g DW. The encapsulation efficiency of phenolic compounds in this study were approximately 60.31 - 77.13%. Nanocapsules with inulin-chitosan-maltodextrin (2.4%-2.4%-0.2%) had good properties of nanocapsules such as good solubility, high total phenolic content and total anthocyanin content. Nanocapsules with 5% inulin and inulinchitosan-maltodextrin (2.4%-2.4%-0.2%) had particle size of 641.4 and 411.1 nm respectively. The nanocapsules had a spherical shape, smooth surfaces but also a few had indentations.