Investigation of Guar Gum and Xanthan Gum Influence on Essential Thyme Oil Emulsion Properties and Encapsulation Release Using Modeling Tools

This study explores the influence of hydrocolloid interactions between Guar Gum (GG) and Xanthan Gum (XG) on the stability and release dynamics of essential thyme oil emulsions. We systematically characterized six emulsions with varying GG and XG ratios, employing spray-drying techniques for the encapsulation process. The stability of the emulsions was quantitatively analyzed, revealing a marked decrease in stability rates correlated with higher initial emulsion activity (zero-order kinetic constant r = -0.972). Furthermore, this study demonstrated that emulsions with carefully optimized hydrocolloid ratios could achieve high encapsulation efficiency (74%) and controlled release profiles. Kinetic modeling and diffusion analyses elucidated that increased XG concentrations tend to reduce diffusivity, thereby enhancing emulsion stability. The effective diffusivity of the thyme oil within the emulsion matrix was determined to be within a range of 0.7 to 2.4 × 10