ACMD Seminar: (Re)engineering functional fat phases for spread’s and chocolates’ manufacturing

Julia Seilert
Ph.D. Student, Technische Universität Berlin

Tuesday, May 9, 2023, 3:00-4:00 PM ET (1:00-2:00 PM MT)

A video of this talk will be made available to NIST staff in the Math channel on NISTube, which is accessible from the NIST internal home page. It will be taken down from NISTube after 12 months at which point it can be requested by emailing the ACMD Seminar Chair.

Abstract: Engineering functional fat phases targeted for spreads and confectionary manufacturing is complicated by different factors including but not limited to the fat’s composition. A modeling framework capturing the relevancy of phase behavior with regard to in-silico compositions is substantial to focused experimental studies. This way, uncharted territory of the composition space can be explored to find potential innovation and sustainable solutions that may remain unknown by trial and error. In this talk, I will demonstrate the difficulties that lie in (re)engineering fat phases along the different phases in the process starting from triglycerides to product characteristics, such as melting range and shelf-life/stability. Starting with discussing the complexity of triglycerides – the building blocks of fats – I will show how to model the thermodynamic properties of pure components. Then, I map out the way to go about modeling the multiple solid-liquid phase behavior of mixtures and will close by highlighting the complexity of kinetic phase behavior and how easily it can be influenced by changing the fat blends’ composition only a little. For this, I will present recent data on a palm oil-based system that was spiked with high-melting triglycerides to trigger phase segregation upon crystallization. The crystallization kinetics were followed using short- and wide-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS/WAXS), Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC), and rotational and oscillatory shear tests. Utilizing different methods allows detangling the superimposed events from multi-step polymorphic crystallization and phase segregation, and will allow verification of modeling results later on.

Bio: Julia Seilert is a Ph.D. candidate at the Department of Food Process Engineering at the Technische Universität Berlin, Germany. She earned her B.Sc. and M.Sc. in food technology specializing in fat technology and mathematical modeling. After a 3-month research stint in early 2020 as a guest researcher at the National Institute of Standards and Technology, USA, she started her Ph.D. research focusing on the interplay of fat composition and polymorphic pathways taken upon crystallization with the aim to generate a profound mathematical model capturing various crystallization phenomena.

Host: Tony Kearsley

Note: This talk will be recorded to provide access to NIST staff and associates who could not be present to the time of the seminar. The recording will be made available in the Math channel on NISTube, which is accessible only on the NIST internal network. This recording could be released to the public through a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request. Do not discuss or visually present any sensitive (CUI/PII/BII) material. Ensure that no inappropriate material or any minors are contained within the background of any recording. (To facilitate this, we request that cameras of attendees are muted except when asking questions.)

Note: Visitors from outside NIST must contact Lochi Orr (410-598-6986); at least 24 hours in advance.