Oxidative stability of polyunsaturated fatty acids and soybean oil in an aqueous solution with emulsifiers

The oxidative stability of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) and soybean oil homogenized with emulsifiers was investigated. Model emulsions were prepared from PUFA, including linoleic acid (LA), arachidonic acid (AA), eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), and from soybean oil emulsified with different emulsifiers: three Tween emulsifiers (Tween 20, Tween 60, Tween 80) and two sucrose esters (S-1170 and S-1570) were used. The results showed that the emulsions prepared from LA and the various emulsifiers, oxidized at 40 degrees C, were unstable. However, the corresponding AA, EPA, and DHA emulsions were stable, indicating that PUFA with a higher degree of unsaturation were more stable with emulsifiers than without the emulsifiers. In the soybean oil-in-water model system, the oxidation of soybean oil with various emulsifiers was less than without the emulsifiers.