Amir Daraei Garmakhany

The increasing demand for natural bioactive compounds in agriculture, food preservation, and pharmaceuticals has highlighted the need for effective delivery systems to enhance their stability and bioavailability. In this study, we address this challenge by developing and characterizing silica hollow nanospheres (HNSs) and hollow polymer nanocapsules (HPNs) for the encapsulation of essential oils (EOs), specifically those derived from Thyme (Thymus vulgaris) and Sage (Salvia officinalis). The HNSs were synthesized using tetraethyl orthosilicate (TEOS) via a sol-gel process, while urea-formaldehyde HPNs (UF-HPNs) were fabricated through in-situ polymerization. The qualitative encapsulation efficiency, structural integrity, and release behavior of the EOs were analyzed using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM), and dynamic light scattering (DLS). The results demonstrated that HNSs, particularly those synthesized via in-situ techniques, exhibited superior size uniformity, higher oil loading capacity (4.18 mg/g), and controlled release performance over 102 days. Adsorption studies revealed that HNSs provided higher adsorption capabilities for Thyme EO, aligning with the Freundlich and Temkin isotherm models. Antimicrobial studies revealed that encapsulated Thyme EO exhibited strong antibacterial activity, with MIC values of 4 µL/mL against Escherichia coli (E. coli) and 2 µL/mL against Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus), while Sage EO required higher concentrations, with MIC values of 8 µL/mL and 4 µL/mL, respectively. Notably, the encapsulation of Thyme EO in HNSs resulted in enhanced antimicrobial performance compared to HPNs, likely due to the porous silica matrix allowing for sustained EO release. The encapsulated EOs also modulated peroxidase enzyme activity, further supporting their potential for biological applications. These findings suggest that HNS-based encapsulation offers a robust and sustainable approach for enhancing the efficacy of natural antimicrobial agents, making them suitable for industrial applications in biopesticides, food safety, and therapeutic formulations.

The process of sprouting makes legumes better by changing their nutrition, chemicals, and taste. Ground sprouted chickpeas are commonly used as the main ingredient in falafel. The aim of this research was to study the impact of drying techniques that include hot‐air, infrared, and microwave on the moisture, ash, total phenolics, antioxidant capacity, color, and rehydration ratio of dried ground sprouted chickpeas. Also, the effects of drying techniques of ground sprouted chickpeas on the moisture, ash, total phenolics, antioxidant activity, color, volume, density, oil content, textural properties, and sensory attributes of fried falafel were examined. The total phenolics of hot‐air‐dried, infrared‐dried, and microwave‐dried samples were 463.42, 766.20, and 470.82 μg Gallic acid (GA)/g dry, respectively. The infrared‐dried ground sprouts had the highest antioxidant capacity. Additionally, the total phenolic content and antioxidant capacity of fried falafels made from infrared‐dried ground sprouted chickpeas were significantly higher than those of the fried falafels made from hot‐air‐dried and microwave‐dried sprouts (p < .05). The mean values of lightness, redness, and yellowness of the fried falafel core ranged from 57.37 to 59.29, 3.66 to 6.88, and 40.50 to 43.31, respectively. The lowest oil absorption was related to the sample prepared from the hot‐air‐dried sprouted chickpeas (p < .05). The firmness, cohesiveness, springiness, and chewiness of the fried falafels were between 38.17 N and 91.56 N, 0.29 and 0.44, 0.48 and 0.58, and 5.38 N and 17.24 N, respectively. The use of infrared‐dried sprouted chickpeas for producing fried falafel, due to the highest odor, flavor, and overall acceptance scores, high phenolic compounds and antioxidant activity, high volume, low density, and low hardness, is recommended.

In this study, the response surface methodology (RSM) was used to optimize the pudding formulation ingredients including the fish/bovine gelatin ratio and cinnamon and clove powder and determine the color and physicochemical and sensory attributes’ change in final pudding product. Experiments were carried out based on a central composite design (CCD). The results showed that by increasing the ratio of fish gelatin to bovine gelatin (FG/BG) up to 3%, the moisture content increased slightly and then decreased significantly. Increasing the cinnamon powder to 0.5% reduced the moisture content. Increasing the FG/BG in the formulation of pudding samples reduced the protein content. The effects of cinnamon and clove powder on the protein content were increasing and decreasing, respectively. By increasing the FG/BG ratio, the samples syneresis showed a significant decrease, while the effects of cinnamon and clove powder on the syneresis were nonsignificant. As the level of cinnamon and clove powder increased, the L^* value decreased. Cinnamon and clove powder had a linear effect, and the interaction of gelatins and clove powder had a significant effect on changes in redness. The effects of cinnamon and clove powder on b^* value were significant. In terms of sensory evaluation, increasing the cinnamon powder concentration increased the appearance scores, while in the case of fish gelatin, this trend was downward. The linear effect of cinnamon powder on taste was significant, while other variables had no significant effect on the taste of the samples. The sample texture was significantly affected by fish gelatin and clove powder. Increasing FG/BG from 0% to 2.5% increased the texture score, but after this range, a decrease in the texture score was observed. The overall acceptance of samples was more affected by spice powder compared to gelatin. By increasing the cinnamon powder and FG/BG, the overall acceptance increased and decreased, respectively. In conclusion, the optimal FG/BG and cinnamon and clove powder were introduced 1.479%, 0.288%, and 0.619% respectively.

Fried potato products are very popular due to their desired quality properties, taste and texture, but their high fat content has caused concern in society. The use of edible coatings before frying is effective in reducing oil absorption. In this research, the effect of different concentration (0, 0.5 and 1%) ...

In this study, three mathematical models (Plank, Pham and numerical model (finite element)) were used to predict the freezing time of potato samples. In order to develop the numerical model, thermophysical properties (density, thermal conductivity and specific heat) were predicted as a function of sample composition and temperature. Convective heat transfer ...

Drying is one of the oldest methods of food preservation, which usually have adverse effect on the physicochemical properties and nutritional value of the final product too. Today, the demand for application of rapid drying methods such as using microwave and infrared beams has increased to prevent or reduce undesirable ...

Increasing consumer awareness of the dangers of chemicals and the effect of heat treatment on the foods nutritional value, lead to increase of the demand for the production and use of fresh or minimaly processed foods. In this study, the ability of cumin, fennel and clove essential oils (concentrations of ...