Preparation and Characterization of Octenyl Succinic Anhydride Modified Starch Microspheres Using Porous CaCO ₃ Template for Enhanced Emulsifying Properties

There is increasing interest in the development of emulsion stabilizers due to their promising applications in food formulations. Herein, this study presented an innovative strategy of octenyl succinic anhydride modified starch (OSAS) microspheres (OM) for the first time by templating on porous calcium carbonate (CaCO 3 ). OSAS at various concentrations (0.3%–3.0%) were applied to fabricate OSAS coated CaCO 3 microparticles (OCM). The results indicated that the highest coating efficiency was attained (42.02% ± 2.05%), and the highest OSAS loading ratio was 552.70 ± 38.48 μg/mg. The BET surface area of 3% OCM was improved to 17.90 ± 1.19 m 2 /g. OM were formed by dissolving the CaCO 3 templates, the morphology of which was wrinkled and showed considerable collapse. Moreover, OM exhibited enhanced thermal stability, a higher contact angle (53.98° ± 0.78° for 3% OM), and superior emulsifying properties. Specially, the EAI and ESI for 3% OM were 31.53 ± 0.03 m 2 /g and 357.76 ± 21.26 min, respectively, which were 1.39 and 2.33 times higher than those of OSAS, respectively. These findings collectively demonstrated OM had the potential to be an effective alternative emulsifier for emulsion‐based food products. This study provides an efficient method to apply starch in the production of microspheres based on CaCO 3 templates, which will be used as emulsifiers in the food industry.