Technological Prospection of Oil Nanoparticles: Primary Characteristics and Profiles.

BACKGROUND The search for technological applications for oils has been growing, largely due to their potential nutritional and economic applications. Encapsulation makes it possible to reduce the disadvantages of oils, such as physical instability or thermodynamics, or to improve their technological properties, enabling their use in various industrial areas. Nanoencapsulated oils have the potential to improve oil bioavailability and achieve controlled release and are able to target bioactive compounds with greater precision than microencapsulated oils. OBJECTIVE The present study aims to evaluate the primary characteristics and profiles of the technological prospection of oil nanoparticles. METHODS This technology foresight study investigates the patenting activity and the academic literature to map out the technological progress and difficulties in the area of nanoencapsulation. RESULTS Exponential growth in patent filing was noted with a peak in 2017, with China filing the highest numbers of patents. Regarding the area of application, the food industry was most common followed by the pharmaceutical industry. The most commonly used terms in patent documents on the subject were nanoemulsion and nanoparticle. The most commonly used oil, technique, wall materials and emulsifiers were soybean oil; emulsification; chitosan and lecithin; and Span 80, Tween 80 and Tween 40, respectively. The obtained articles were typically patent documents. The main depositor was Jiangnan University, and most inventors filed the same number of patent documents. CONCLUSION Nanoencapsulation of oils has many known advantages that have been widely published in the literature and used by industry. There is a trend in the growth of patent document deposits and related scientific publications, indicating that many innovations have been made and highlighting the importance of oil nanoencapsulation.