Plant proteins as physical barriers: Coacervate-based core-shell microcapsules

This thesis is the result of collaboration between industry and academia: flavor & fragrance industry and soft matter science. This thesis aims to explore sustainable encapsulation techniques for industry, reducing carbon footprint and meeting the growing consumer preference for products with green labeling. We achieve this goal by replacing polymers from animal and petrochemical routes with green and biodegradable plant-based polymers in the encapsulation process. In this thesis, we focus on a specific type of encapsulation technique: coacervate-based core-shell microcapsule. We look for suitable plant-based polymers and processing methods to formulate coacervates, reveal the structure to property relations in complex systems, linking science to industrial solutions. Moreover, we provide new fundamental insights in the underlying physics governing the core-shell microcapsule formation via microrheology.