C¡ttical lleview; ttt food Seience ani Nutrrtk»t.

52:334 346\2ú121
Copyrighl,g Taylor and Franc¡s Groüp, LLt
Tavlor &. Francis
l¿yr¡r!t ;ri* ú^r1_¡
ISSN: 1040-8398 priirtl 1549 1852 orl¡ne
D 0l: I 0.1 080/104083J8.2010.500234

Food Gels: Gelling Process and Nerru

'-\ Appl¡cations
SOUNIYA BANEIU t, E and SU V IIND ti li f-l A'IIAC [t A RYA

I\{1'sore 570020, lndia

Food gels are viscoelastic substances and several gelled products are manufactured thtoughout fhe world. The gelling
a.gents in fi-tods ate usually polysacckarides and proteins. In food gels. the polymer molecules a.re fiot cross-linkcd by
covalent bonds wilh the exception of disulphide bonds in some protein gels. Inslead, Íhe molecules are held together by a
combinatian ofwe*k inter-molecular forces like hydr"ogen bonds, elecltostatic forces, Van der Waals forces, and hydrophobic
inleractions. Polysaccharides includ.ing hydrocolloids are strongly hydrated in aqueous medium but they tend to have less
ordered structures. The mechanisn of gelation depends on the nature of the gellittg agent(s) and, on the conditions of gel
fornation lifu fhe temperatilrc, lhe presence of iow, the pH, and lhe concentration of gelling agenls, etc. Characterization
of gels can be performed in several ways ofwhich rheological fieasurements are frequently practiced. Multi-component
or mixed gel system is an importetzt area of interest in which fwo or more gelling components are sintultaneously used to
achieve cerlain specirtc structural andfimctional characteristics. We here discuss about the dffirmt gels and. gelling agents,
the cha.racterizaÍion of gels, and the meclwnixn of gelalion with an emphasis on mixed or m¡tlti-conxponent gels that would
hav e s gnificant c omme rc ial applic ations.
i.

Keywords Gel. gelling agents, mulfi-component gels. mechanism, hydrocolloids

INTRODLIC']'Il)N r¡f indLrstrial sectors t(-) Ikrrf()nn it nnrnher of funciit-rns inclLrdin-u

A gel is an intcrrncr-li¡rle bctu,een a solid and lir-luidposscssing
both elastic (solicl) anil t)ow liiqLrid) cha¡acteristics. ;\ sol (lit¡-
uid) to gel (si¡lirl) trausition i¡ües place when -qe1s iue lix'rncii.
Several gel lbrnring iugredients are selective l-v employccl to gcn-
erate food gels of acceptable iril¡ibutes. pafiiculixl),' rhe cxtenr
of textural properties, which is ¡n irrdication of the p«rcess ol
-teliing.
A nuinber ol liocis are mai"ketr'd in the form ol gcl that otlers
convcniencc 1r) the consumers. Exarqtles inciuclc jur-n. jeliy" con-
f-ectioner-_v prodilcts. desserts, r¡uick-set geis. irnrl procttcts based
on fiuits rrncl vegetables. Invariatrly. ooe 01'rlore lr:lling agents
ae empio-ved to lichieve the desirecl or targeted puamcter(s).
The gelling lrgeüts thal iu-e tiequently Lrsed in such prodncts lle
usu a1l,v peudtteil llocl hydlocolloids f'hese hytlrlrcillioids are
derir,ed ll-om natural s()urces ard rcl¡rs t(i 1l f itnge ol'polvsac-
chariclcs ilnd ploteiils thrit ¡r'e nor'l,iidavs u,iclely useri in ir variety
Address ct»r.:spondence to Sur'.:nilu lJhattiichirn,ti. Scientist. Food L,ngi-
nceritrs l)i:partmeut. Centrel lior¡tl T.:chnoluical l{¿se¿rch I[stitute. Nfysore
j7t)()2ii. lndia, Tel.: oE21-15 l-1,!71. 2-5 lt9lo: liiix:
suYendu (al cf h:i.¡:es. i11
thickening and gelling itilueous ilispersions. stabiiizing foan.is.
euuIsions. and dispersions. susl¡cnri prrrticulate materials and
inhihit or decrease s¡r[ier'e sis. es ',r'cU rs incrcase water refe¡tion
(SLrthertand. 2007). In irili'lition. pol,vsaccharirles iue irc()rp(i-
rated because of their capacit-v to control the textiire of tbods
and lcr the controlletl l'eleasrr ol Ílavors: the advirntage is also
trücn lior¡ the abiiit_v olscne Ítjxtures rif polysacchtirides to ex-
hibir synergistic gelling. r\,ssociiltecl §'ith lirese readily' Íreasur-
al-.le ph,vsical properl,ies iire others stich as moLrtht"eel or sensory
characteristics. rvhich aiso shou¡ some coreiation u.lth phrrsical
properties.
A lbod ge1 can also be considered as a high moistnre thrce-
dimension¡ri polymeric ilctui()fk thiil resists florv under pres-
silLe iinrl more or less lclliiris tilcir dislinc)t slnictLual shilpe
(mcchanical rigiLlit¡,). It is a viscoelastic sl,stem rvith ir stol'-
age mc¡dultts i(r ) Latget than tl.te loss modttlus (G '). It is
ñ contirlu()us rlet\\¡ork 0f intelcunnectetl palficles riI asstllted
mac«rmolcculcs dispersed in a continuoil-s liquid phase. Celti-
flcittir¡n is thc phenomenon inlolr,ing the '.tssocirtion or ct'oss-
linking Lrl tllc lnlvmer chains to lirrm a t1'ree-ciirncnsir,rnlrl nct-
{-)E21-2517:-r-1. E-nt¿il:
wrrk tbat traps or imrnobilizes q,ater within ít t0 lbrin a tigicl
sLIilcture.

-t-1+
7

Fü)D G}II,S AI\,II) APP]-ICAI'I{ )N S 335

GTiT,LING AGENT'S cess. Plesurnably. disulplúde (-S-S-l hridges and hydrophobic

inte¡acti«rns olten pla1, t11ai()t'foies. 'l'[te gr,era]l reactiou rate Can
Getling ilgeilts are foocl tirirlitir,es used lo lhicken irnd sta- bc dcterminerl elther by the uufbiding or by the ilggt'cgaiiolt rcr-
bilize viu'irius to()ds, like jellies. desserts" and ciudjes. "l'hese action depending on the ratio Of the reaction rates of the single
'agents pror.ide thefoods r,r,ith texlure throu-uh lirrmation ot a steps in a piüticLllar tempef iltufe rarlge.
-lcJ. Some stabilize'rs i¡od thicrkening agel.]ts are also gelling
a-qenls.
Pressure
Oul.v a compüatively ttw gun-is ibrm gels" and these v'.uy
rvidel¡'in gel characler iu.id lextul-e so tl'rat thc-v ale used tbr spe-
I Iigh pressLrrc r¡iler's :tll additional degrec of tleedom in mod-
cific fuod applicatic.ns. I:irequently used gelling agents inclLide
if"ving lunctional plope rries ot molecuies since liigh pressure caü
natulal gnms. prc-rteins. statches, per:tins. and a¡Iu'agiu". and can
hc epplied as a single plocess r¡r in combinttion with others. in
bL¡ hroaLüy chssitied into poivsltcchalides and proteins. Most
particular §,ith jncreased temperarurOs. In general. high prcs-
gc lli nr pol-vsacchar^ides u e iretero-po1ys accharides and h,vdro-
su¡e tar,oLs reactioirs. u,hich lead to I rcductlon of ihe over¿tll
colloid in natr-lre i'Ial-.lc l). The,v can be iregLrlar Lrnbtanched
volLune of the svstem. Pre.ssil¡e causes weter tr¡ dissociale ¿rnd
stfl-rctr-ires. regLrlar or lue:grilar branched stfltcturcs
block copoly-
the pIl becrtmes rno¡c acidic nnder pressure. Difierences exists
n1ers. or stnlctures ctxrtaining comt_¡lex but we:11-deflned repeat-
in appearirnce ancl rheological properties o1'gcls made with the
in-s units. 'l-hej¡ sources arc aiso diflerent including plant, ani-
application of prcssure and he¿Lt (Ileremans. 1995).
m¡il, and mjcrobial origin. 'l hoLrgh possibly all ol them can be
Llsed li)r the pLtrpose of thickcning. the emphasis is on gel lbr-
mation. The applicittions include jams. jellies, salad ü'essin-{s. Ionic Strery4th
deserts. rnarr¡lade. jujuLres, \'()gurts. etc. On tlle other hand,
several proteins ¿r"e also used lor llle pulpose of gel rnaking Mi¡novalent anrl divde¡t cations such as silriium irnd calcium
(Table 2). 'fhese lnclude zein liom corn. and severiil iuimal ci¡¡ jncrease ihe ionic strengtil o¡ ¡l1s gel.'l'he electrclstatic re-
proteins like gelatin ancl r,i,hey proteins. pulsive forcrs between the molecules iue reduced or neutrnlised
aud gelation can occur. Ioriic-induced gelation has been reported
for pre-denatured whey proteins and in contrast to heat-induced
CONDI'T'TONS {)F GEL FOR}.IATION gcJaliou. is uamed cciltl gcllrtirtir (Brvant and McCllements. i 998:
Alting et al.. 2002). Ionic-inilLrced geliltion is oi greater impur-
T-he ge1 lbrmation is a s¡xrntaneous process liorn'1 rj¡¡¡l s tance iü polysaccharide gels. lor' example. alginate. pcctln. or
polvmcl dis¡lersiru. or particultrlc sLrspension. atrcl cxlclnallv caü¿gecnaü.
cont¡ollable cor-tditions of lemperaturt ot sohrtion con.tpr,¡;i¡iir¡.
Thus, the sol-!,el conversion process usuall,v lnvolr,es aggrega-
pH
tion of particles. 01' lnrcromolecules. r,vith ei'cntual -generatiou of
il net\riork spalniilg ¡he entire container r,0lume (C1ark, 1992).
The formatioir of geis can be classilled broaclly as ph-vsically Chan.les in pH due to the addition of ar-:iils or microtrilrl l'er"-
induced (heat. pressulc) and chemicallv induced (ircid. jonic, mentation change the net chargr,. 0l the tnolecule and therelitre
enzymatic) gelalion r'cllctions. In case of prOtein ge1s, the gela- trlte¡ Íhe .tltractive and repulsiYe lorccs hetween molecules as
tjon of proteirrs ret¡uiles a driving li¡r'ce io unirlcl the nativc well as lhe intLrrirctions betq,een rnolccules and solvent, that is.
protcin structure, fi¡lltiq,'ed by an aggre-uatlon prour-.ss giling I h,vdration properties. In addition. the solubiiit¡, of salts chan-ues
r'iith pll .,r,hich mitv corrtril¡ute to gel formation. Tire mech¡r-
three-dimensionlrl orgitnized network of aggre gates or str ancls of
inolesnles cross-linkeci lry non-cor,alent b{11'}ds itr less tierluently
nisln clf acid gel lirlmation couid be explaiue<1 by the flactal
a-ssregation tl]cory (I-ucey and Singh. 1997t.
by covaleut bi¡nds ( iirtosaus et a1.. 2002). The conditions oI gel
tonnation ilepend nlostlv oil the se\,eritl physicr-r-chernical ftrc-
tors as nlcrniioned in the subsequent sections- Presence of Enzyme

Temperahtre Enzvrne-ir¡riuced gelation is based o0 the introduction of

iutiflcirll covalent cross-liüks into ft¡iid pt]1eins. Among othels,
1'caction s catal!'zedby trirns-g lu t ll mi nase ( TG). peroxiclase. iurd
I-leat-induced gelatiou is probabl,v the most important aúd
pol,vptrenol oxidase are snitable fir¡ e:r'oss-linking of proteins
cL)lrlrrron method to obitirr gels (Aguiler¿r and Rademacher-.
(l-auber ct a]., 200i).
2004). Gelation is a two-step process; an unfolding rx <lisso-
ciation of the molecules due to thc energv input takes piace
in the br:giurir.rg trl expose reactive sires. The second step is Solvent Quatity
lhe associalion trnd aggregtlti(iil of untolded molecLrles to form
cr-rrnplexes of lrighcr moleculiir weighr. The 1u'st step rna,v be The nature and presence of solvent mlrrkedly influences gel
revcrsible while the seconrt rtuc is usually trn iner,ersible plir- folrralir,,n. for erample. lhe cr-rncent.ratcr-l sugar solution is a
JJO
Table I Hydrocolloids used
Gelling agent
Agar
Cereal flour and starch
(cooked/ instantlpre-
gelatinized,r modified)
Cellulose (common forms are
carboxymethyl-cellulose)
Carageenan (kappa, iota,
lamda, hybrid, biend,
refined)
Pecf in ihigh-methoxyl, HM
and low-methoxyl, LM)
Guar gum
Gum Arabic
Xanthan gum
Locust bean gul.n¡C¡rrb gut¡
Al,si¡¿tc I alsini c acidl
Konjac ntanlran
Gum Karaya
Ciul.n Tr¿r¿canth
poor solvent t'or pectiu. i{yrlfitgcn bonrls in the .junction zoncs
c¿ln olllv be turmcd in'C()ncerltrnterl sugar solulion. and llence,
gclirtlon takes place only in this t¡,'pe of soh,cur (Clar-k, I9921
Richardsrtn et al., 1998).
as gelling agents
Sou¡ce
Red algae (Gelidlanr sp. and
Gracilaria sp.) or
(Sp h ae ro co cc us euchema)
Potato, wheat, rice, nraize,
tapiocá
Plant cell wall material and
chemically modiñed
Red se¿weeds {Chondrus
criryus)
Hetero polysaccharide derived
from the cell wal1 of higher
tenestrial plants, and fruifs
like citrus peel, guava, apple
Endosperm of guar gum
Sap taken from two species
¡},e Acacia t¡ee, Acacia
s ene g al anrJ, Ac ac ia s qt al
Fermentation of glucose or
stuoseby Xmúhomonas
campestns
Exh'acted ftom the seeds of the
Carob iree
Brown seaweeds (M acro cy s tis
Wrlferü, Ascophyllum
nodosum and various types
of Lami*aria)
Tubers of Konjac (Lasioideae
amorplzophallus)
Extract of Sr€rc¡tli¿I üees
Dried sap of several species of
legumes of the genus
A s Írd I dla s, including A,.
ads cendens, A, gumtni{er,
ar,d A. fragccanlhus
S i JA N Lil<i I it- A N" I )S tJ I Ld I "iA(,:I 1¡\ ir\'.-\
Name of l¡inding blocks Application.r Reterences
Agaropectin and agarose Used as laxafive, vegetarian Armisen et al., (2000);
seaweeds (D-galactose and gelatin substitute, in Stanley (2006)
L-anhydrogalactose) jellies and Japanese
desserts such as anmitsu
D-s, 1-4, 1-6 linked glucose Secondary gelliog agent, Jena and Bhatfachaty¿
polymer, mainly made of amylose cost effective, ¡ice flou¡ (2003); Aika and
(linear) and amylopectin based gels Bhattacharya (2008)
(txanched)
Homo-palymer of B (1, 4) D-glucose Salad dressings and deserts Williams and Philips
(200ü)
Sulphated D-galactose and Desserts, gel to imnobilise Williams andPhilips
L-anhydrogalactose cells/ enzymes (2000)
Linear polymer ofpartly esterified Jam, je11y, ¡narmalade, Williams and Philips
o,-( 1 4)-linked D-galactouionic jujubes, yogurt (2000); Oakentull
and marmuronic acid. Sometime (1987)
galacturonic acid is replaced by
rhamnose, galactose and arabinose
Linear chain of Galac¡onarnan unif Pastry fillings, yogurt, Cui et al. (2007);
liquid cheese products Richardson et al.
and sweet desserts (1998)
of Conplex mixtlre of saccharides Hard gummy candies,
and Sutherlaad (200?)
glycoproieins chocolate c¿ndies and
cherving gums
Polysaccharide chain consists of lwo Salad dressings and sauces, Sutherland (2007);
f-D-gltcose units linked through helps to stabilize the Doublier and Cuvelier
the 1, 4 positiors. The side chain colloidal oil and solid (2006)
consists of two mannose and one componenfs agaifist
glucouronic acid, aild thus the creaming by acting as aü
chain consists of repeating emulsiier and texture
mcdules of five sugat units modiñers in different
foods
If is a galactonunnan Gelling agent Cui et al. (2007);
Schorsch et al. (1997)
Linear copolymer ¡vith blocks of Jellies, geiation with Roopa and Bhattacharya
( 1-4)-linked É-D-mannuroriate divalent cations, cell (2008)
and its C-5 epimer a-L-guluronate immobilization and
residues, covalently linked encapsulation, appetite
together in different sequences §uppr¿ssant
Giucom¿nn¿o is Geiling, texturing, and Takigami (2000)
heteropolysaccharide consisting of wate( binding agent, to
D-glucose (G) and D-mannose provide fat replacement
(M), linked by p -D-1,4 bonds pfopedies iri fat-free and
with a G/[4 ratio of 1 to 1.6 low-fat meat products
Acerylarcd acidic polysaccharide Brown sauce, toppings, Le Cerf et al. ( 1990)l
containing a-D-galacturonic acid flllings Weiping and Branwell
and ¿-L-rhamnose residues as the (2000)
main chains and the acid is linked
by 1, 2 1fukage of B-D-galactose or
hy I.3 linJ<age olB-D-glucuronic
acid on side chains
Consists oftwo fractions: a Confectionary icings, Aspinall and Bail Lie
water-soluble, neut¡al dressings i1963)
arabinogalactar called
tragacanthin and an insoluble
fraction called tragacanthic acid
Conce ntration oJ' Gelling Age nt
Gel t'onnation onl), occrtrs altove a critical miníDlun1 a\_rit-
centritlion. C". rvhicll is specitic tbl eech h-vtllrcolloid. Asui.ose
 FOOI) GI-,I,S ANI) APPl,IC.{fIONS 11J

'l'¿rhle 2 Proleins used ¿rs selling iigcltts

Gelling agent Source Natnc of binding blocks Appiications Ri:le¡cnc*s

Gelatin Animal skin and bones (made Protein high in glycine and Gelling agent in gelatin desserts, \\hrd ¡rncl Courls ( 1977i: Scluieber
(acidiclalkaline) by partiai hydrolysis of proline jel ly. tlifl es and confectioneries, ¿nd Gueis (20il7 t: Oakcnftrll
coliagen clanimal jam, yogufi, cream cheese and ( 1!tt7 r

connective tissue) rnargarine

Whey protein Acid or sweet dairy whey, Mainly conprise of globular Gelling agent and fhickener in Agtrlera and 1{adüra.her {2004)
separated ftom the casein proteins like food induslry
curd as the soluble ftaction B-lactoglobulin and
during cheese nunufaclure a-lactalbumin
Soya proteins Soybeans Interacfion of two globulin Heat set gel Bhatfach:uya and J+na (2007)
proteins like glycinin and
B-conglycinin
Egg proteiru Egg Corsists of abott 707¿ Gelling and thickening agent for Aguilera and Rademacher (2004)
aibumen ( glotrtlar proteins confectionery producls
contáining ovomucin fibres)
artd 3AVo egg yolk (several
types of low-densi§
lipoproteins)
Zein Con.r Peptide chain containing Gel ctiaii:d candr. nuts. 1i'uit.pilis Shahidi and Smi-¡"-iecki ( 199i )

mainly prolamine end other .nc¿psulated food

:urd bakery,products

\\¡ill li)lrll gels ilt concentratiorr as Io\{, as 0.29i rvhile ftx ecid C HARAC 7' Ii R I ZAT I O N O F GE L
thinncd slarch. ii concenúation of - l57c is rerlLtited helirlc gels
rue Ii»'med lAguiiera and Iladcrlrecher. 20ti4). üel lirrma¡lon is basicall,v a tralrsfbrlxation of so1 to the stat!:
of ge1 duriug u/ilich the viscoelasticit-v chilngcs abruptl-v \\,ith si-
milltaneorls de vdlopment of solid chalactcri stics. In othe¡ u,ords.
11 o lar fuI as s /D e g r e e of Po lyrn e ri ztt I i oil there is an interchan_ge of continuous and disruntinuoLts phases
Lturing gel tbrrnation.'fhus. rlrr.re is a necr:ssitv ti)r the mea-
If concentratioll of the pol"vmer is weil ltbove the criticiil suremeúl ol Yis0oelilstic (r'lleological) chaac:terístícs of mate-
co¡centration. Ihe eft'ect ol rlroliu' ila§s is in-significant. brrt if riiü rvhich is rnostl-v condltcted h-v di1'1'creirr r-vpe of e\perinenrs
the concentration is in the rargc oi'(lt vahtes. the higher thc í'lable 3) On thc other"hand.'fabie 4 shows thc non-rheclclgical
lnolar rrass. thc irigher is the moc[llus altd faster is the process rnethods fo¡ the mcasurernent c1 gel chir-lticteristics. These a¡e
of -selation (Wa1stla. 200-3). gencrrltioir of ileat 1lorv diita arld microscopic itbscrviLti()l.rs.

Table 3 -\1i:tl'rods [(]r lh. rhllolosictll ireasureuteilt ol g¡l chartcteristics

Me¿suÍerltenL
Natura of test Type of measurement lnstrument used pa'¿mctdrs Applications References

Fundam¿nlaltests Compression
Enrpirical
Textlue me¿suring ModLrlus of elasticity, Surimi gel Kim et al. (2006); Macdohald and
s)-.!tenl Poissic-n's raticr Hamman (1992); Walstra (2003)
Stress ¡elaxation
'ltxtrue i{esidual stress.
nteasLrring Gellan gels Morris (1986)
svstcnr relax¿rtion tiurrr
Creep C'i¡rtrolled slrcss Shear nrodulus. creep Soy and gelatin gels Kamata and Ki¡sella (1989);
rl.ter¡ tle t c¡ con:pliance Chronakis et al. (1995)
Osciliation Cor.rtrolleil shess Storale modul¡.rs (C t. Viscoelastic Jena and Bhattacharya (2003); Kim
rheonleter Ioss nrrrdul¡s ((l ). characterization of rice, et al. (2006)! Bhattacharya and
pl.tase anglc. complex soy gels, mlred gels Jena (2007); Keogh et al. (1995)
n.rod:.¡ ir.r s and .¡lscosity
Punctu¡e force Texture measLrring Pttnclin.r cllar¡cleristics Cha¡acterization of rice gel Jena and Bhatt¿charya (2003); Kim
s-vsten] et al. (2006)
Compression Textrire memuring Peak 1i» r'c. finures-r. Measurement of gel quality Kim et al. (2ü06); Smev¡ing ( 1999)

"s)':itern
arotllllres si(xl encrgv and gel stength
lmitative Texh.rre profile Tixtur.: r'ne¿rsurins Püanletcrs ot t(x1urd Food gels Pons and Fiszman (1996)
analysis (TPA) slster'!1 prolile analysis hkc
ir¿udness. brittlen:ss.
adhe s ir'¿nes s.
splingiuess,
cohesile¡ress
-)-1ó s. l,\
I rr* Lil{.tBL. ¡\ Nl) s. ts I iA I 1t,\( rl iAltYA

Table 4 Other methods tbr the measurement ofgel characterístics

'[ip.: of measuremenl Instrument used L4easurement parameters .\p¡rlications Rel'erences

Structural Differential scaming caiorimeter Heat flow Gel1an and pciyvinyl alcohol blend Sudhamani et at. (2003)
Cha¡acterizatioo (DSC) film
X-ray diffraction and SAXS Particle size analysis Nano delivery system in food Luykr eJ al., (2008)
Colorimeter Color measurement Gellan edihle films Leon et al. (2008)
Microscopic Light micrcscopy (LlQ Area of the granules Thpioca starch gel Vittadini et al. (2006)
characterization
Scanning electron microscope Stuuctural arrangement of The numbe¡, area and iocation of Mo{itaka er al. (2003)
(SEM con4)onents particles ín gei
Transmission electron microscopy Sfructural distribution of Characterisüc studies of mixed gel Aguilera and Stanley (1999)
(TEM) co[stituents
Atomic force microscope Structure of the molecules Structural cha¡acterisücs of Luykx et al. (2008)
nanoparticies
Molecular NMR Confcrmation changes on Structural features of üe constituents Saito (1995)
Characterization gelation
FTTR Moiecular structure lnfrated spectra of the componeÍts Sudhamani et al. (2003)
F?RAMAN; Near infrmed Molecular characterization Functional characteristics of pectfuis Wilats et al. (2006)
fesonanc¿
Proximate analysis Vacuum oven Moisture Moisture estimation Leon et al. (2008)
Atomic absorption spectroscopy Mineral content Chitosan and whey protein isolate l,aplante et al.. (2005)
based model system
Kjeldhal apparatus Protein Whey protein-+assava starch gel Aguilera and Stanley (1999)
DNS method Carbohydrate Sugar content of the gel Aguilera and Baffico (1997)

Iirndaroenlal tcsts ('fitble -i) rio not depend on tlle geometr
of the sample arld the ínstr-urnent Ltsed. TIle theoii,,-sical pr.rper-
tics Llclermined al talge detitr'niations include ll'actLire" tailure,
ar)d 1^iiptLlre chitritcteristics like stress/strain. itnd ere usually
detenúned by uniaxiirl g¡¡rnpression i.nd tLritsion. RhcoiogÍca1
or texturai cbalilcleristics of starcit gels ha\.e been ini,estiglttcri
moslly on model s-vstems in oi'cler to understand hasic tactors
anil mcchanisrrl ln\rlved in the gclling itnd charactcrize ¡he ge1
propcrties (Ditubliei"et al., 1992, .[cnn irnd Bhattacharva, 200-3).
'I'hc llavleigh scalteriilg measurement can be emplo,ved to
estitli?lte the size oi thc piuticle in sointiorr. It can provide inibr-
maii()n on the valioLls r¡g§tE'gCti()n pr()Ccsse§ (iccLllTing during
gelation. Bestles, dyuanúc lighi scatterírg can also bc used to
rheolo-sy ol gelatiüe dispe¡siou b¡r the measurement of
stird--v thc
the dilTusion coclficient of sLlsprritded pafiicles arld rhe et-tective
viscositv ot fhe gel ¡Yitt¡dlni et al.. 2Ll0(r).
Rheological properties depend on thc Jresence of rn)lecul¡r
lrctw()rk. N,Ieasnrerr.icnt citn be madc r,r,Llich shou,s thc relirtion-
ship betweer stfcss (tbrce per unit iuea) and striin (detormati{ln
du§r to epplieal ti¡r'cc) for a gel undcr conlpressit)n. 'l'he Young's
or elaslic modlll[s is thr. ratio i)l'stress to strain 0f a mateli¡rl
when iestecl within the linear lirnit of elasticitl,. 'lhc rn¡xir¡urn
stress that the gel can susiain is rrrplufe strength (RS). Bulk
ñ)dLrirls (K) can hc obtaineil whcu the lb¡ce is applied tiom
illl the directious (isott-opicllly) and the chlrngtr iir voiume per
origina.L volume is oblaiuerl (Kim er at.. 2006).
Rheologicril ineitsuremenl ol' ge1 characteristics h¡s becu
broacliy catirg(-)rized intn snlll and large cletormatittn tesis (\'en
Vliet, 199-5). Srnall rL:lbrmation iest generally inrylies stntcruritl
features while laige delirrrn¡tiou tcrsts are empl()-yed t() llciisure
the stress, strain. and Lailure properries of a gc1 (Ross-N,1urph3,,.
1e95).
TYPES OF GEL
The polymer molecules in gels are not cross linked by co-
valent bonds (except protein geis); iostead, the molecules are
held together by weak intermoleculat force such as hydrogen
bonds, elecffostatic forces, Van der Waals forces, and hydropho-
bic interactions. The gelation process depends on the interaction
of two or more polymff molecules forming gel (Aguilera and
Rademacher, 2004). There are different kinds of gel deperiding
on their stuctural features and characteristics.
Hydrogel
It is a network of polymer chains that are water-insolubie,
sometimes found as a colloidal gel in which water is the dis-.
persioo medirim. They are super absorbent (contain over 997o
water) natuffil or synihetic polymers. Hydi'ogeis possess also a
degree of ñexibility very similar to natural tissue due to their
high water sontent. Environmentally sensitive hydrogels have
the ability to sense changes of pFI, tempe{ature, or the con-
centratioll of metabolite and release their load as a tesult of
such achange (Kong, 2005). Natural hydrogei materials include
agarose, methyl cellulose, and other natutally derivedpolymers.
These hydrogels are used in sustainedrelease delivery systeÍrs
for drugs and nutrients.
Organogels
It is a non-crystalline, non-glassy, thermoreversible solid
material composed of a liquid organic phase eotrapped in a
 F(]t)l) (ii,rl,S AN I I ¡\PI)LI(-,\IIONS
slftlcturing nel\\¡ork ('I'erecil. ]997). The liqirirl can he an or-
g,alric solvent. il ilrincral oil. or a vegetable oi1. l'lle solubility
lnd particle dimensions 01'the stfticturant ue ilxportant chal ac-
teristics l'or the elastic properties. flrrnr¡ess. and integrity (\¡an
Esch ct al.. 1999). An examplc o1'lbr'¡'iation of an unde sit'etl ther-
lllrxeversible nctwotk is lhe occur¡ence of wax crystallizittion
in crucle oil (Kuüiar and Katue, 2005).
Xerogels
A xerogel is a solicl formed ti-orn a ge1 by rfu.,ving with Lrnhin-
dered shrirkr¡ge. Xcrogels Lisuitllv rctajn high porosity (2-5%,)
and eoorrnous surl'ece ¿x'ea (1-50-900 mr/g), along with ver¡r
srnall pore size (1-10 nm) (Walte¡. 1998).
Aeragels
It is lt ci¡ll¡ririll gel in u,liich gas is used as tl'le dispersion
r¡eclium {Zírñiga lnd Aguiiera. 1008). When solvent ¡emoval
occurs urrder h-vpercritical isuptr"critical) conclitions. the net-
r'vork does not shrink and l highlv porous. kl,irrlensit,v mate'¡ial
known as an aerogel is llrotluced. These rurtc:l'itls rnostlv Erssess
excrpti on al pr opei'ties inclurli n g ver¡' l ou, densit-v. hi gh specific
sur'l¡¡ce areas a1ld excelleut thcl'lrial insnlation pr'olterties.
Weak Gels
St:nie polysaccharides, ol'ten of t-ood origin. shorv properties
intelrncriiale between polyslccharide solutions iltd true gels.
¡nd ii-¡mr r,i,cak gcls. tlnder le¡rv de lirnnation, ri'etrk gels bchave
as el¿,rstic gels. At suliiciently lirrge dcti-rrmaúon or at high shclir
rates. tlte)' ll'actltre. break ir"reversibl.v. anO florv. There alc a
nLrmbel of poil,saccharides such as xerrthrlt gLrni irntl gellan gilm
that exlúbit tltis type of behil,ior (Mrillrnimed et a1.. 2007).
F-luid Gels
Gcls occnr when hot hydlocolkrids dispetsions irL: ill-
lou,ed tr¡ crrr¡l and set Lrncler quiescent conditi¡rns ¡Yalli anr,[
Nlliskiel. 2001). 'l'lie dispersbn separatcs into po1-viler'-r'1ch
mictr-particlcs and ¡:olvmer-poor regions, which forms the in-
te¡stitial space betwecn the particles. Tire over'¿ill rheologv of
the s),stem comes t}om palticle-particle interactions. which cirn
be disrupteci br" k¡r,'shcar rates and shear stresse s (Nrtrton ei al..
1999: 2006). These svstcms, conimonly known as iluitl gcls. cirn
ltave a rvide ¡an-ue of textures irrchicling ;r light pourable gel and a
thic ker spre arlable pa s te. Rhcologicirlly, the lr¡lv-she u yis¡r si r )
r
ol'gcllan gnm -tels is reiatir,cl-v high at ü low gum concel)tr:uir)n
and tllLrs tire tblrnation of flLiid lcl is posslble. Polysaccharicic:s
like agar ancl k-canlgee¡an tirrrn lcls under stiitable shcrrr^ lielcl
r-luring gelutir¡n lrlong wiilr olher liquiil loocls (N(x'k)l et ltl ..
i9"qi.
139
Temperature Sensitiye Gel
(iels can also be thcrrmoreversible ur llrermoirreversible.
Thermoleversihle gels itre those which melt oLr heating and gel
upon couiirtg (c.g., a-ear, ciurilgeenan. gel1irn. and gelatin) r,r,hile
thenno-irrer,ersible gels irre thosc r,vhich once fbnned on heat-
ing wili not melt (e.-e... al-rlnate. lorv mcthoxvl pectin). Baser,l r,¡n
tenllle rature dependence of thc elastic rnotlulns. polysacchiuiile
gcls ma-v be classified intr¡ li)rlr c¡tegories (Nishin¡ri and Zltmg.
2004). "i'hese iue (a) cold set gels Jike irgarose. carirgce nau. aud
gellan rvhich form a gel on coolíng thcr dispersion (b) hcat set
gels like some cr:llukrse derivatives (NIC anil IIPI\,I(I). citrdlan.
konjac glLrcornanuan r,r,hich torrn ge1 on heating the dispersion
(c) ¡:e-entrant gels iike xyloglucan rvhich ltirms .sels rrt inter-
rncr.lintr' specific ternpcrtriurc ranges and remain in thc so1 stlltc
at olriside of this tcrnperatrrrc range. and (d) iulerse re-eiltraIt
geis like ir mixed solutir.in r¡1'rnethvL ce[lLr1ose anri
-eclatln rvhir:h
Ior'rns gel at highcr iu)al 1a)$¡er telnperature. irrrd stl,vs in the so1
stilte in the intermcdiaie [crnperature range.
,I
MI|CHANTS OF GI|I, F'OITMATION
It is desirable to understand the mechaüism of gelling pro-
cr:sses in orcler to ilcilievc gels of spec.ific attributes. 'lhe mech-
arrisrn ol gelation mainly dcpends- 0n the gelliug iieenis" natLtre.
and syrergistic ettects ol diü'ercnt constituents.
Gelatin
Geilrtin rnelts rvhen he¿tcrrl and soliilifies rvhen coolcd a¡¡irin.
Together u,itl.r water. it fbrms a semi-soliit colktidal gel. Gelirtio¡
is governccl b-v the partial retbrnlaiiitn ot triple helices found in
collagen dLrring ci,.olin-e. In the first step. a pol-vpeptide chain
t¿kes an orientiitiol] to induce a reacti\,e slte, l.ate¡. condensation
oi trvr¡ othe¡ chains near ihe reactive site occur givirrg rise to
triple helix lirrn.iiition (Renard et al., 2006).
Whey Proteins
FIc¡rt-inrluced gelalion of whcv proteins is t,vpical o1'globular
plrteins and prrcceds through a series of transitions. -sLrch trs
(i) ilcnatLuirtion (unlirldi¡gl ol nativc prrteins. (ii) aggre-qatioü
of unli¡ldec1 molecriles. (iii) st¡and li¡r'¡nÍion liom agglegates.
and (ir') r,rssociali()n ol strands into a netu,or"k. Aggregates a1e
li¡'rucci in the presence of salts ((.'a-vot aurl I-orient, 1997: .Iong
et a1., l(l()t).
Soy Proteirts
Gehtion is echicved b-v heating soybean ihru'(llhirttachuya
¡nd Jena. 2[i(]7) oi rnitk irllou.ed l,¡'' addition ol' sirli (e .g.. Ca I l
rx-lV{g ) kr lirr-rn:r gt'l or"curd. althr¡ugh lcitiific:rri,rn (e.g.
7
J.t0 S. IJ¡\ Ntilt.l Lilr. A
with g l iicorio- J- lar:tone) ai so iilrllccs aggregat j on 01' deniuured
proteil) rn0lecrlies.
Milk Prot¿ins
Llasein molecirles irc str()ngi\ hy,,1i'opltobii:. and thils sub-
nicclles are held together b,v htdrophobic bouds irnd salt
bridges. Enzymrttic hydrtl¡rsis of k-casein by rennet lelease-\
CMP (caseinomirc«.rpepiide) and c¡ruses the micelles to irggre-
gate leading t(-r reiuet geiaüon (Keogh et a1.. 19!ló. Irertsch
et al., 200-ll.
Egg l)rateins
Both albunien ard yolk of liriLrid e-ggs hilve the crrpagi¡y 1q)
t'orm gels upon heating. Gel lirrmalion is ii two-step process
of denatura[ion 1irllowec1 b¡., aggregation iif deni]tured proteins
(klontejano el ai.. 1984.: \!'irodr.vald and Cotterill. 1986).
Algiruafes
Ge.ls are tbrmed on the additir¡n of prJhrv¿1lg¡1 gaüons aI ir lou
pH (.- 4). Gulut'onic acid rcsidues eive a buckted conlijnniiti(ln
p«rviding an efiecti\¡e binding site tbr ille catioils (Picullel et al..
199¿1). The gel stlength alsc\.1epcl)ds on the natut'e ()f the dir,¿rlent
cation \\,ith the orrlei like Bar-- - Si- .- Ca-- > N,IS'
(Smidsrod. 1974). ln c()iltritst to most S,elling pol,rrsaccl'ruides,
alginate sels have the 1_ruticuliu letlLrre of being cold setting.
Pectitt
The gclliug characlerisiics of pe clin stron-ti-v depend on tire
degree of esteriflcati.)n. I{igh methox-vl pectins r,vil} gel oni,v in
the presencc of sugars or other co-solutes (srich ts su-uats, poly-
o1s. r¡r rnrnrih-vdric aLcolioi.s) (Oakenlull aod Scr¡tt, 1984). trnci at
a snlficiently lou' pI I (-3. 0-4. 5 ). C:iclation c¡f low tiehox_vl pectins
occurs only in the prescnce of dilrrlent ci-ltions like c¡rlcir¡m.
A¡¡ar
Cclation of agar is '.r thei'inri-revetsible process ancl tekes
place only due to tiie tormation of hvdlr-terr bond i:\lniscn
et a1.. 2()001. A-uar t'equiles hea¡ to bring it ínro dispersion.
On coclin-u. the hot dispersions set 1() gcls. Nlolecules undergo a
coil hcli,x transition tirllt¡wed by aggregation r¡l helices {Sielile}.,
2006i.
Sfarch
When nafive starch grains are heated above a certain critical
lempeft]ture (gclatinizalion lernpel'atr]re) in an excess of u,ir-
tet'. gelatinization occrrrs, rvl'rich in4rlirrs rhat alnvlose letrches
N l.i S Li t 1;\l"lAt'l lAl{YA
tl1)m the granLiles artl tl¡tri llic lillter.efcatly sr,i,ell alld evcr)tit-
all-v tall ¡pil1. Irreversiblc sti,'elling ol ihe gr¡nules thr:n occurs
irccompanieil by solubilization rtl'arrivlose. If the systcm then is
cor¡iecl and the ixxylose concentritti()n is i¡bcve the chain overllip
ciincentration c'. corresponding to 2-*4?' starch (ilependlng on
starch t_vpe), u gel is formed. This is nrainly dl-re t¡¡ the 1i;nnation
of nricrocrystirllites of ar:it-vlose aLld the gei resernbies a poiy-
mcr gel. Upon cooling, a ge1 is lormed, consistillg of ckrscly
packed granr:les. rvi¡h a thin la-_vel of amvlose gei as a kind of
glue betrveen the granLiles (\,ILrrphy. 20()0: Sikora et a1.. 2007;
\¡itr¡ra*,ong et al.. i008).
Cctrragennan
Cairageenan is an ionic po1-vmer and 1t¡'lns helical gels on
coolilrg in presence ol salts (elecrtroly'tes) piü1ioularl-v K- ioDs.
('e¡taiu cirtions like K-. Ri. . Cs , and NHr- promote hotil
helix fon.nation and gclation. L{cleculcs unclelgr,. a coil helix
transition tblkru,erl b¡,ag-ure-uatioui¡t heiices ¡\\hng et a1., 2005).
The -uelation oi carra-rcenlrn generally, inr«rlr.es associatiolt of
the polvÍier chains b-v the fixmation ilf inteimr¡lecLrlar douhle
helices to lorm "ordcrcd drirnains." Celarion occLlls rvíth tlre
subseqrrent ilggregation of these c1<;mains medialerl b-v specilic
bindín-q ol the ge1 promoting carions (l{ees er a1.. i980). The
first step in the gelation of cara-eeenlu is the trar:sitir¡n trom
a disordcrecl random coil to the ordered helical state (Yiebke
et irl., i99,i).
Gellan Grm
Gel¡rtion mechanisrn of ge11an gum is based on the domain
rrodel (NtLxris et al.. 1996: Ntlorris. 1998). In aqueous sitlutir¡r'r
at hi-sh temperatLtres. gellan po11,mels i¡r"e in lr disoldered single-
coiled state. (-oolin.u oi'the -teiiirn sol pl.rrnotes the lixinalion ol
a tireefold left-hancled rloLtl-.1e l-relir. slabillzed by intcnral h.v-
dro-Qen bonding (Chiindr ¿sek¡uan anrl lltrdl.ra. 1995 ). Coil-helix
c()nl0tmatii¡nal uansitiol] r\Lcurs ir1 i.t tenipL.rilLlrre range ltltrt
-l(l to 50 [i. clepending oi.r the ionic strength of the dispersion
(Horinaka et al.. 2{i04). Aitel rhis triinsirion. the geiJan doLrble
helires c¿rn be associ:ttecl in the pr csence of cations to lbnniunc-
tiiu zones. which ctn ag-sre-saie md leird to ihe tbrlilation of an
intercixrnected three-dimension.ü gLrl network. During this step,
tile so1 is ct.'nr.eLted into lr gel. The gelation process is dclrenelerrt
on ihe t,ypE: ol'cittion. ii,.nic stren-gtl]. tempefiiture, and prilvrner
conceiltretion (Sandcrson. 1990), aL¡d the netrvork structure of
the -uellan -ueis crrn also be rnodifi¿rl.
Guar Gunt
Clels are Ll.rrmed i¡n coolint in the presence of salts. Nftllecules
rundergo a coil helix triulsltion followecl by a-ugtegation <¡f he-
Iices. Guu gLrmis readily.soluble in colcl water. It has a ffiannose
7
FOOD GIll.S
to galactose raliu of around 2:1, aitr.'l exhibits \\,eiü synergism
(Sandolo et al.. 2009: Robinson er al., i982).
Xctnthan Gu.m
(iels are obtainecl in the plesence of electrol,vtcs o1¡er a broad
pl{ rauge and lt higit temperatul'es. Gets are lbrrned on ct¡ol-
ing. Xanthan arld p(llvmannau chains associate litllorving tire
xauthan coil-hclix rransition (K¡rtzbauer. 199t1. Sworn, 2000).
l,ocust l)ean Gum
(lels are tbrmetl
oLi cooling. Polvr¡ann¡ur chains assttciut.c
follorving the coil-helix transitiou. Iirr locust bcan gitm, lhe
galactose dencient regritns ar'e irtvrllved in thc assucitttion
(i{ichardson et al.. 19!¡8. Schr¡rsch er al.. 1997).
¡.1 U T,TI -C O M P{ ) N E NT/MT XED GET,S
The concept oi rrulti-compolent or mixed gels arises frorn
thc applicalion po:int of r,iell. lirl example. the rlse of ..1 single
gelling agent ma-v provide a ge1 that ma_v have cel'titin litd-
tations like low cohesiveness. u,eak mechanical strLlctural in-
iegrit.v. an insril{lcient stahilit_v towluds processiltg uml enti-
lo¡u¡en t a] coud.iti c¡ns. Lr uaccspt¡ble appL'¿rance. low shell'-li te.
and sigrriticlnt synere,cis. 'üus" nrixeil gc1 is a combinaiion of
i-.iopolvmers u,iih inclusir¡i¡ ol ditl?rent solutes (Aguilera anti
Radernacher. 2004). N,lore thi,in one gelling ageut is heing used
to tbrnr nrjxecl -ue1 ilhtrle 5). Whey protein and polysaccha-
rides ale thc tr.r,o .9e11ing biopolymers that are used to lilnt
rnixed gels. (lombinations oi' gelling agetlts a e tr-equeniiy Lrsed
in tbod indLtstr¡r to attain either a ciesirable texture or to perllrrn
polvsaccharicle-protein (meatldairy product) inter actitin lvltile
forning gel (Nussinovitch, I997).
Precipittition or gelatiou c?ln occuf if the two hvdrocolloids
i'lssocir¡te. Oppositc'ly chugeil hvcürrcolloids are Iikel,v to asso-
cj¿te and lilrm a precipitate. Associaríon 0f some stitTpoty'sac-
cha¡ide rnolocules like xanthait gum ancl carrageenan resLtLts in
ge1 tbrrnation. Tn this system, po1_vmers arc ileld togethcr h,v
strong ifltermolecul.ar lntclracti()lt. and the tLlxture itnd natul'e ()1'
tile gel is entirclv dilletent ll'()tr rhe siuule cornprnent gel. It
is thns of great importance tbi' prodr.rcing new texture and new
applicetions (\\hlstra, 200.11. The rnixcd gcis can be broarii-v
cl¿ssitted as:
Bína rvffw o-C omport e nt GeI
Onll' trvo compouenrs ilrc used lbr'litrming this rype ot'gel.
In 1,vpe I gel, the gel prtl-v''rner A can rnodi§ the gelling char-
acteristics of polvrrer B but r,vjthout uudertoing tn\¡ interaction
herwc'err thcrri. irol exiunple. arlilitic,ll cii cll:xlrnn to gelatine
ANi) APPl.t('.\r'1(]N( -141
crsirses the rate of tbrmation o1 collagen uiple helix structure
arid rate o1'clcvekrpment 01- gel network. Dextr¿tn and pol-veth-v-
lene glycol. dLte to their steric cxclusion propertics. iue able to
raisc the helix coil transition refiiperaturc (O¿rlientirll, l987). Iu
t,vpe II gel, boLh polvrners are ciipablc of tbrming a gel iletw(xk
irnd thel, lre of three tvpcs. such as.
i. Interpenetrating networks: Ilere trvo polymers intelact only
bv munral entirngicrncnts (Sikora et al.. 2008). ln lcality. it
is ditlicult to prep¿irc due 1o incomparibilir-v ol unlike poly-
rner s. It might be possiblc to 1b¡l one polymer network aild
thcn introduce [he secotd poiyrner". and a11ow to ge] uríthin
the ple-existi[r! netlvork. titr example. itse ol alginates to
recovcr and utilire wasle p1"otein.
ii. Phase separated network: ConcentlaLed dispersious of
mi-xed pol,vmers (t-or cxarnple" proteins and polvsacclilridcs )
mosll,v lead to phasc scpi]f ittioll ancl cle-mlxin-e. Ex;rmple in-
clLlc'les núxed gcls ol agar and gehtitr. Phase sc¡.lur.ruit'n is
ir¡i.licated b¡, shup ciranges in inclting point anrl elasticit-v
Lnodirlns (Lorén et al.. 2001: Lurrcliu et iil.. 2000).
iii. Cluupled netrvc¡rk: Cclation ma,v be possit le rrhen a liivor-
iltrle intcrraction exists trctween the clritins ol tu,,o polyrners
conllecled n].qether by intermolecular binding. 'fhis struc-
ture arises liom gel fbruiing polvmers u,ith nt least some
junctiotr zones invoir,ing chernical c«tss-links. Gel filrma-
tion bctween irlginate esters and -uelatin has beerr reported.
This t"vpe ril- s,vnelgic interraction is mole typ.icitl afilong
binar,v pol_vsirccharide s-vstems (Zas,vpkin et al., 1997).
Itilled Gels
A 1111ed
-ueI is a gel matrix r,vith purticulate inclusions. The
fillers rnay be -cas bLrbhles. liquid üoplets, cr-ystals. tat. or cetlu-
1ar cornprtnents such irs statch granLrles. The properties oÍ irllers
change dulin-9 processing. The eil-ect of the filler on lhe elas-
Iic plooerties of the gel (reintbrcerneur) cail be quanritativel,v
clescribed as the riltio of thc rnoditlus ol lillcd gel to that rtf
the ccresponding unfilled gcl. Siarch gei is rhe natural fillcd
mixed gc1. in rvhich melrix f()t'tnec[ bv am¡:lose iind the srvr¡llen
arn,vlopectin giluLrles act irs filleis (Steeneken and Wt¡ortman.
20091.
Poly sacehcrides tsith Surf'actant Mic e lles
An anionic surlectant (sLrch as Sl)S) uten added at a con-
centration above the CL,IC (critic¡l nicellization concontl-a-
tion). rnicelies ue formed end interiict u,ith the polvrner. Somc-
tiinl's. a l-cll¡ pol]'flier chaius ot'erlirp q,ith the inicelles aird lornl
cross-[irrkltges. Ii ¡he poll,rner concentratiot] is lesser thirn thc
chain or,er lap coücentriltiolt, tl'ien rnainl,v interrnolecLrlu .junc-
tioils irc tirrrned. arcl vice I ct'sn. r,iscr.relastic gcls ale der,elr:¡rcd
irr- il.indilen. 199-l).
2

1"12 S. BÉ\NEITJtJTi ANI) S. IJi IAI"Ii\L]1IAR}',{

T¿blc 5 ('har¡etcrislies ancl lp¡rhcatiori ol rrrulti,contponent Eel

Component used Other ingredient Application References

(iarboxyrnet§lcellulosr troundnut oil. crrum'ri»r s¿lt based product during deep-fat ii,ving Bryarri et a1. Í2ti(j9)

so,liunr^rnagnesilrrrt.¡:iotassiurn& heirtlre¿ltntentconditions
pl.rosphorous sourccs
r-Carrageenan ( meirl nricelles Aggregation irl oa:jein a1i.e1le.s ¿nd .li .r1 ¿1. (l(illE)
k-¡arraqecn¿rn in r¿corlstituted skiil milk
Chitosan ('hickr:n salt-soluble proteins I-se of chilos¿n rn phvsico-cheniral K¿rhanechai et ¿1. t2t)08)
properties ol chicken salt-s¡rluble protein gel
,1 Gellan gum Geiatin Cicllan gel-based microtarii:r delir.er.-v svstem W¿ns et al. (2()08)
Gellan gum Konjar: glucomannan Cl.uu acterizalitxr of koqac Xu et a1. (2ffi7)
glucol.n¿rln¿n- ue llan gum blend irhns arti
thci .uitll.ilit¡ l,'r r\'1.'ir.,'()l
nr:ir¡
incorporated product
Gellan gum Calcium salt, azathioprins Multiparticuiate gel formulation for colonic Singh and Kim (2007)
delivery
r-Carrageenan and gellan gum Sucrose and aspartame Sweet gels Bayaui et al, (20ü?)
Ge11an gum droplets
B-lactoglobulin-coated lipid Prolein-coated lipid droplefs onto gellan gum Santipanichwong et a1. (2008)
hydrogei
Carboxynrt§l cellulose (CMC) Milk Milk based gels Bayarri er al. (2007)
Carrag*enan, gellan grnl locust Pectin Whey protein-polysaccharicle cold-set gels Jong et al. (2009)
bean gum
r-csrragee¡an Locust bean gum Sl.nergistic locust bean gum-r-canageenan Arda et al. (2009)
gels
Ge1lan gurn, whey protein isolate Glucono-á-lactone fracturing con4rosites Cold gelaíion products Berg et a1. (2007)
(WPD
Carrageenan, whey protein isolaie Soybean oil Emulsion ge1 Singh et al. (2003)
Geilaa, agar Sodium eitrate, calcium chloride, Gel for tueating gastric ulcers Rajinikanth and Mishra (2008)
clarifhromycin
ctritosan, whey protein Canola oil Emuision gel l,aplante et al. (2006)
concenúate
Ctritosan Heparin Pharmaceulical microemulsion ge1 Andersson andl-ofroth (2003)
Miik Whey protein h.otein gels Ferrsch ei al. (2003)
Iota -<artageenan Ethyl hexanoate Flavour releasing polysaccharide gels Juteau et al. (2004)
Starch Ethyl hexanoate Flavour release from polysaccharide gels Juteau et á1. (2004)
Pectin Mixture of enzymes Enzymes for improved gel strenglh Budolfsen and Nielsen (1999)
Alginate Calcium salt, food acids, antioxidants Quick set desert mix gel Hembling et al. (1995)
Gellan gum Glycerol, and ascorbic, citric, acetic, oxalic Gum f,lms as c€lriers of ascorbic acid Leon ef al. (2008)
acids, hydrogen peroxide, sodium
acetate, magnesium perchlorate, sodium
bromide, ma gnesium, chloride

Polymers u'ith Heat-Settitlg Proteins 'I'he net resrllt is tl'Iat the

el{lctile concentration of the proteiil
dispersion itcreases and when it gels at a higher temperaturc
Any gtobulai prolsin irt a ptl highel' ttran iis isoelcctric point (e.g.. 75'C fbr lvhe1, proteins). a stroug protein miltf ix is tirrmerl
\'vhen heatcd can iilrül a gel. If the same pr()portion ol allionirr aroilnci Selatiuized sierch (AsLriler'.,r irnd ilaffico, 1997).
pol_yst¡ccharide (e.g., caffageenan) itnd pr(.)teiÍr is mlxccl \Á.'er1l. a
homogeucous dispersiou is lbrmed which Lrpon heating lorm a
ge1. Ttlis gej sllows higher elastlc modnius tllirn that ol prilteir)
aione (scl'torsch et al ' 2001r) Emul'ion Gels (coprlyrner Gels)

Gels contahling protein or polysacchadde-coyercd fat

Starth-Reinforced I'rotein (jels ü'oplets exhibit enh¡tcecl stitljress if the adsotbed ¡rqreiu ¡1.
polvsircchnride outer laver interacts with lhe matrix (So,cit-
-gel
Starch is widelv used as ft11et s ln cofi)lnerci¿l prodrlcts to Flellera et a1.. 2008: AgLtilera and Kesslet 1989). I-og;uaa j et ai.
strengthen the mcch¿nicirl propei'ties of geis as well as to redrlce (2007) has developed an ernulsion-gel by tornriug lln emuisir)n
co§t. Thc role 01 stiuch granulcs is to withdralv wtlter lrom the with edible oil at the beginninr tirllowed bv hetu setting \\¡ith
s,vstcln as they swell an.1 irnbibe water dnring gelatiniziltion. sov protein to ¿¡¡rin a lt¡ell-set gel.
 F(:)(]D Glll,s ANlr Appi-¡1-'r1]9¡' -143

Íwtant (]el these frndings lie in d*,eloping restmctrlrecl foods anc'l ne'"v types
ol'lbods having adecluitte mecharical integritv. long streil-lilt,
Multicrimponent instanl gcrl is a rclatively nerv idea wherein 11r-rtriiional status. and desilable consumcr acceptability.
a gel rvith accepiable rextural attrillLltes is firrmed qLrickly (say,
-5nrin.). The lactors that decidc the fonnarion of an instatrt gel
inclLrde q.rltroplitrte selection of raw rnatetials, the nature and Rl:)Í.ERENCES
presence of catal-vzin-u ilgents. and envi¡onrnenlal conditions
including the pH and the temperature. Aguilera. .T. \,f. ¿nd llaficr¡. P (1997). St¡ucture mech;rnical propefiies of heat

Rheological behavior and microstluctnre of pca proteir4i- rnduced wh¿,v protein/cassava starch gel-s. .1. Fctiti Sci..62: 1i146 1{166.
Asuiler¿r. .T. -\f. ¿nd Raden.racher. 11. (l()01). Prctein gcls. ln: pruteint ifi Food
carrirgeenan/stuch gels wittr difterent setting conditiitns rvas
P¡¡c¿:¡sr¡(. pp. -16E 182. Ricker \n-shio Yrda. Ed. \toclhead Publisliilrg
iirvestiglitcd b,v Nr-rnes er el. t2006). f'he results slror.v that gel Linuted CR('Press Ll-C. Ieu'\irr-}i.
ar-rd
setting conditions l¡ad I signrlicrurl infhience on the phase sep- Agui1era. .l. \1. and Stanlev. l). \\'. I 1999 1. Food structufins. In: N4iclostn¡r1ur¿l
irrirtioil process of irea pr0tein and k-cirra-eeenan. ancl hence on Pru.tciplcsL¡1'FoodPlc¡c¿ssinrarrtiEngineering.pp. l8-5 2-l9"Aguilera..l.\1..
the &nal stnlcture and texinral propcrties of the ntixed ge1. De- ixld Stanl.ry. [). \\¡.. Er1s.. Chapnran ¿ud i]all. Ncrv York.
r\guiJera. J. \1. ¿u¡d Kessler. H. a;. i 11,¡i1i). Ploperties t¡l'nrix¿d and tilled,rlpe
p-ypere et iil. (2003) im,esrigeicd the mirrr¡l"e design approach on
dairy gels. J. ]''ot:C ,\ci.54: 121:l 1217.
thc c1¡rnarnic rlicolo-uictrl and uniaxial cotnpressirn behaviol" cif Alka. K. and Bli¿ttir\rharya. S. (2008). Cirlhng behar,ior ol rice flou¡ dispcrsious
milk clesserts. Vlixture dcsi-urr cxpr.t'i1nL.lts \\¡L.re usecl to study rit diiferent concentr¿tions of solids ¿nd time eif he¿itirs. f . T¿.rt. .\tud.. 39.
tlle intelactions helrveen k-citlrirgeeni]lt. DirtiYe muze stal'ch, and 211 251.
rrúlk p«rleins in the tbrmatir¡n of ¡r mixeil ge I strilcturr). 'fhe uúlk Altiirg. A. C.. De.)ongir. H. Il. 1.. Visschers. R. \\'.. ¿nd Sin.tor.rs. J. \\¡. l:r.,\.
i 20t)2.¡. Phl sical and chenricel inter¿rctions ir.r cold gelation of lborl proteins.
dessert is considered as it thrL.e-üofilponent systcm in tvhich thc
,1. t\grtt. lbod (lL¡:t¡t. 50: l(rli2. .16E9.
interactions betrvcen tu,o intrerlients itlc not isr¡lated liom lhe And¿rsson. M. ¡rd l-.ol'irrt1.r. .T. L.. (l(l{i,rl. Sn.rall puLicles ola heparin/chitosll
third constituent. I-ce et al. (200-l) characterized geltan-gertatin cornpler prepared 1'rlm a pharn.uceuticall\ accept¿tblc nticroer.nulsior.r. Ír¡. J.

-gels iud obserlr.d tl)a[ the hardLless decrr:ases with incretsing

gelatiir proportioll ¡nd ci¡hcsir,eness incrcases ripto the geliiu
to c.clalin ratio oI 40: 60 and then llL.creases. The concentlrtiun
ol N:,rCl and gcllar) to -relatin tttio a1e critical tac[ors lbr the
-[he
characteristícs of thc lilrñed -gtrl. efi"ect o1'clitTelent acldi-
tiYes r¡n textnral attrlhittes of multi-component gcls is expectcrl
cf l'hrt.rrrat:eriitct 257: --1(,15 -lil9.
A«la. E.. Kar¿r. S,. rurd Pekc¡u.r. O. i21l()9). Synergistic elñ¡t of the locu.st bean
gui.rl on the tlrerrlai phase tr¿jl1sitlous of « ,c¿lfrageerl¿m gels. Fooi Ht tlfticoll.
23: {51 15!r.
Arntisen. R.. Gal¿rt:rs. Ir,. and Hi.spanagar. S. A. í24)il1-l). Agar. ln: Handbook
ol liydrocolloids. pp. 21 39. Pliliips. {i. O.. and Willianrs, P. A., Eds.,
\\¡r¡otll¡t: ad Publishing (i o.. C anrbrid-ae. {r.K.

to generate rcst¡ricttired products like liuit-basc.il ge 1s. ,,\spinail.C.{)-.andBaill-ie..l.(i96.-1).Gumtragro¿urth PartI.Irr¿ictior.r¿ltionof

tl.ti:grrrrandthestiuclurcoftlesac¿urtl:icacid."I.ú',1¿¿l¡..l¿¡¡:.318:f702 1711.
J3rrja.j.I-. ard Singlial. R. {2ti07,. Gellan gum for redui'ing oil rptake in ser,. a
lecun.kr lr¿sed producl duing deep-tat lryinr. FooC Chtn. 1{t1: 1472 1411 .
C(}NCLUSIO!{S Ba-vaüi. S.. Ctxuález-It»nás. L.. ¿nd Costell. h. {f()ilg). Viscoelastic ¡rroperties
ol irqueous and milk syslenrs rvith carbox-yn')ethvl t.¿llulose. fbod llrdroct:lt.
2-1: .1.11 "i5{).
Ge'ls iu'e viscoelastic l¡¿rti-:rlals. itnd the stability ol lirod gels l3ayaui. S.. Rivas. 1-. lzquierdo. L.. ard Costeil. E. i2i)07). Influence oftcature
is of utn-x¡st importance for con¡lcrcial use. ThLrs. tlte under- on the temL.oral pe]:ception of s\r'cetness of gelled s,vstenrs. flr¿C l?¿s. 1r¡¡. 40t
standing ol the couversir¡n of sol to gei is essentiarl rbr devek--ping 9tx) 908.
gelicd products. A liuge nuinber ol ftrctors such as thc n;1ture of Itcrg, I-.. \'. D.. Vli¿t. T. \¡.. i-ind.:n. L. V. D.. Boekel. \4. {. .I. S.. and Velde.
F. \1 D. {2007}. Serul.nreleas..: Ihc hirlden clualitl ur liacruring conlposites.
materiirl. concent¡ation, tirue^ leinpet'atLrre^ pl1. etc.. cuu rtt-lec1
l,it¡ti H.,,Crot:oil.21: ll0 {ll.
tlle process Ol gcl lirrrnation. anil conseqriently. its textilrc, t.he Bhatlaeharr ¿. S.. and J enil. R- ( :( )(17 ). Gcllins bchar.j or of detatl.:d so1, bean flour
mi¡st critical factor fbr cotsnrrcr acceplallcc. fhe role of hydir.r- disp.:rsrons due to miert¡l ar cr tr¿¿tment: 'Iextl.u al. oscillator-V. n1i crostructur¿rl
colloids and pr oteins. and the presencc ()l cations a1s0 clic:tate the arrd sensor-v properties. J. I-ooti E¡¡!.78: 1,]rl,i 1.111.
llr--vnnt. C. \{.. and \4c('len.rer.rts. D. J. (1Ll!)8) },{olecular lrasis of ¡rotein ñtnc-
structure of ge1. The detailer-i viscr.¡elaslic properties oi alginate
tionaliñ s ith special colsideralion oL cold-s¿l gcls derir.ed tiom heat dena-
.Qels cari be rlel"ermiued bl, emprk¡-yi¡g lirnrian'iental rheological turcd n he-v. T*:nis tn l:L¡ad Sci. Tt:clut¡i. 9'. I l.r 15 1.
tests such as lorv-strain c,,iltlfc\si( rD. uÍL.cp-rec(r\,er-v. osci.illr- Budoltiel. Ci.. and \i¿1sen. i,. ivl. ( 1999). iv{ethrxl 1or production ofan ¿cir:liliccl
tion, aüd strc'ss re iaxirtii¡n. 'l'ire pitenomenon oi strain hardenirrg edible gel on mlk l¡¿rsis. LIS P¿iti:nt -i.36rJ,160.
a¡d the li-ilcture behiivior can be correlated \\¡ith ccl lirrmins Crvot. P, iu.rd L,onent. D. (1991). Sulfuclfun.tion relationships of rvhey pro-

conilitions.
l'here is a lxck in knoq,lecige concerning thc lr:lationsl'rip be-
trveen the gei lbrming varlabk:s iulcl lhe textul'al attributes of the
cleveloped gei. The .ulavit.v inducecl llow and sprearlut ilit¡,, and
teins. In: Food Proteins andtlieir A1-.plications. pp. 125".25ó. D¿modaran, S.,
and P¿ual. A.. F.ds.. l{arcel Dckkel, Inc.. New llork.
('handr¡rsek¿u¿n. R.. ar¡d Radh¿. ,.\. { lt!i5 i. Molecular itr,:i]ifectures and func-
tional pro¡rerties ol grllarr gum:rnd related polysacr{rtuidt:s.'lit:t¡Cs in Íi¡cC
,l ¡:i.'feclytol. 6: 1,1,: 1.1S,

sens()rv attributes of tiiese ge1 prorlLlcrts arc yet to be ascerttined,
though lhese indices are rnandatory to know 1br their u¡idc nse.
New t.vpes o1'ge11ed proiJucts like rnu)ti-component o¡ mixed
gels, aeraled gels, and elnulsion gels ire the new dilecricins
thal lr"e t,xpecreil to hlivc it goo.'l 1'uturc srilrl.'J'lle appliclttiou of
Chronrkis.1. S.. Kasap.is. S.. Richardson. Il" K.. and Doxasr¡kis. G. (1995).
flharac:telísation t¡l'a ct¡r:rr-rercial srx isolatc by physical technic¡res. "/. I:.rr.
StLt¡i. 26:.171 389.
('l¿rk. A. Il. ( 1992). Gels and Gellinc. In: PhtsicLrl Ch!fit¡stt\, c../'Fbiids. pp.
26.l-,183. SChwartzbere.IL Ci..:rnd lIartel. R. \\.. Ljds.. Vrr."i [)"kk,.r. N..,0,
York.
7

C
>o
d
iC
ú- ü é
o ccc E o>yl C
^E .9
-o -óO.^
,9 '6
9.o UCU 6-Y !
Yc C coñ d .g :s!l¡ 0-o
oá
4, oJ c! t E
o
6ll; ^G
a= ro if G^ú o -o 46ro cÉ
úq)
(.),ñ =o OE;; -o ^o
:Y ^
.l:u o C6
a+a mO oJr:o Oñ
LÜ
C.
¡, L l
OJ
1l
.YO6 c 0, -UC ots
{= O¿'
.:f
o-
ó0
o¡ -ú-
ñoo
AJ
i; =
C
--o
lo
'o- E-o o
-a orq
ñF
.^:O o:
OO *6 0fu f@
pE -of
O0 c!
.o0 o ñ0
é* §.s p oo

ffig
C
'óe o:6 su
c_
OG ñ> ll¿ o
c ru .rc
4r
P¡ ;"^ 0, o
c C^ i:'u C:
Ero o-Y .! U L. ru .:7 U>E -
6!l
E.V 9-1 c
-(f qr AJ €f, >oJ G oc
e! !D0 =Q-"'
#ú: O ¡, c dr .:
do ot ,^rc
=L
*0
Uo §o
o;ct a QJC
UU
o oE ro q,,
JQ Eqo U -o ZZ O
o d
oJ aJ ñEfG Ñ
.a ;
:o
E
ü
d
:oh
oñG
N.:-
6 -If ñ Gf
'ó>u6 0;-
a ñ 6-"4 (u
9o¡ UÓVÚ
E
o o
-lf b¡Y Ñ
c
fl d !í-
o a.)
()-c
Gú!O
:fPñ
o
O(J

o l!1 :
- c
o =-
JC
tro
o
a)
uo o,§ túo:. G E^-9
L V YI
o
.TJ Fcó
.*_
-o
fi¡
G _-o
L: U u c
I §0) A
=(E 5T
ü'E
G
-o ügq a -6O o
0
¿ro o
f,00
C
._CC
¡-
-F 'Oo
OF
-.:
0",o+
>rc C co-
o oof
=
c -{
.I c¡
9orD
ü.9 o
.g

ooo
E¡
LL
oo o
"óo
sU uO - >-o
.:oG
.Y
c
o
L

u-
PE
A-
c--
o.9
m Fij
sE tr:l
p^G]-Y
C o--
o :0qr
OJ
!E 0 o
C
.o
6 -o
,ro
(¿
C
oo
ñv
^. C
ñ-'-
aYo
cJc:
o
OJ

ñ9
¡U
Eñó o"
C
c f, tr- o:FoYl ñq
I¡' i^
.13 o l >^! -ñóI
*E¡Ü .G óal
oa;il 0C oi
(E E¡ Ul:U
ñruo!
r#ou á) u60 u _o
u-o o o.*ñ
JU-YlI

H.ñ.§
!t E !o A.G
a
-o
c o
o
-o
-ü
ñGt
toor
ñ Y19 o
pPal! .qÜ0
o
=Ca OTruÑ G O -a
f§rrt= 0J!O : r) oJ ul o:o o -.oo-
Ytr[oo] TPbp--o
E.§R
oe=
ar
:-o.E
a :Í0oG
ái¡ 9!
*ó-_^
rcG"
q ó;
,o o
U o
-o
üo
u-
c oi.o
É.Y-
!-oO¡
o
ñ ñ!-L

ecc o
\o.g
9aq

'ooo
j
-$ca
*- ro
.990r
cmO
ñ E
c .q
o
caJ
!-tr
6f;Á
ú.=t__
.§6Xl o
.-c Lr m a ;: u ^-:'i
ro ¡-oo xf"tiro OJ
ñ 9'= L;úO
-ro'-
=rJ
i€E ct a6-=o
CO- .9o-9ói
>vP
-eC
0ah J {U
,:NOs
arfC .E:óUñ
0E Á o L c'ú c C §ñ=o UUá
EroÚ -o iE Os t ñ.o.- 6 q P.§ q L oi
u
ú o

§s'g oic C 0lcaql -OU6 o .:Pd ñ ü OIE

T ;i'o o Lñ]@ UÚ :qou!j P!62ñ
o
o--L fcu
!O- =-
Pl í=ü
?or o C- I¿e6-8
=o- 0
caoo-- bOL
0 ng
L'
¿l-
:¡
dGñ
LJ
-ñ PIY>> 0rc.: U
_ocl
ú;uoo
§ 0J - f:1t
t^ +¡ ál
v
uo: üür¡ ul!u o u-6 u-o-o G^>L
f,.; O O o-i C ñ ñ
g E: ñ
:^C o.6
o
o
G oo, oo
ñ o: -aJ
e ,H-
:) 'os
ooo
0r
Ioori O !rt o
Lru oñc "Y or
pLa
o>.§ ñypI o ,;
E¡r;
-o
C úi §i* ñf -ii
o
-o-
CGO
o
.,9.-f ó.-
.:uc
6'rJ ü
.;(J0,
-o
C_
LO
O¡
-o-
ññó ñO
C-q ^'
9lj o úo;
-0Jn+:
OE= X (,
zYO \ .- O nr'- o.E i
dr '¡=Oa a O-c ;90 GOU
=6o a'!u> co9¡ E co o::c r, q Ol
ñ IU U úo@ ; Vtv
oJc
'üo
(joc :E>t C 6'ñ
-o.!i
.9 Ouo
:oo
hñ6L
.d i ol OO UqJO "|:O6
!-o cj
- -o
91
--
M
G!ocJ ,- C orP
§Ct^Áú LCv
-*oF
U- tu _ ñ rce
§G
-6v
óFá
uoo
C ¿CGX{
o OO:Y
h!
o
to 6c.
= rc
C
=
o fo : E9
!,=
squ6ñE;.e cts-
s, o G!U áE,go- of,u
6 o rooñ
aro6 (, oJt tuC o túo út
o13 f -o
o
x t! t-l ó-o ú -uaob¡ u m: =oJ -o
u-If - ñó!
E
o
.9
tú
E
.o E lu
E
o o E
o
at
o ctr P tr
*,E " 6 E
E :9 6
@ b HE 6'E H§
.g ,s
g o
L
E
f§
s6
G .9 .-- ü
9
tr E
o
o .9o o '= bE É
..!Í
(J u HEt
uoo Eg
9cL o
o
o
o $ú
6s
o
o
É,
o
L
o-