Fabrication of Omega-3 Fatty Acid Oil-Loaded Microcapsule Powders Using Gum Arabic and β-Cyclodextrin

Microcapsule powders containing omega-3 fatty acid oils were prepared using gum arabic through an emulsion and spray-drying process and β-cyclodextrin through a filtration/drying process. The prepared powder samples were characterized by OM, SEM, TGA, DSC, and GC analysis. In the gum arabic formulation, the EPA and DHA contents could not be determined after the spray-drying process by GC analysis. In the β-cyclodextrin formulation, GC analysis showed that the total EPA + DHA content changed from 661.41 mg/g in the original omega-3 fatty acid oil sample to 117.44 mg/g in the microcapsule powder sample. In the time-dependent peroxide value (PV) analysis, the oil recovered from the β-cyclodextrin powder showed a slightly higher mean PV than the process-matched original oil at Day 0, but lower mean PV values at Days 7 and 14. These results describe the preparation and characterization of omega-3 fatty acid oil-loaded microcapsule powder samples under the investigated conditions.