Developing microencapsulated flaxseed oil containing shrimp (Litopenaeus setiferus) astaxanthin using a pilot scale spray dryer

Shrimp byproducts are an excellent source of astaxanthin. The antioxidant-rich natural astaxanthin, dispersed in alpha-linolenic acid-rich flaxseed oil, may provide healthier functional food options for consumers. The goal was to develop astaxanthin dry powder using microencapsulation technology. Emulsions prepared with flaxseed oil (EF) and flaxseed oil containing shrimp astaxanthin (ESA) were spray-dried to produce microencapsulated powders using a pilot scale spray dryer. Energy required for spray drying EF and ESA and physicochemical properties of the powders were evaluated. The energy required to spray dry EF and ESA was 2.676 × 10 4 and 2.405 × 10 4  kJ kg −1 respectively. The measured production rate of microencapsulated flaxseed oil (MF) and flaxseed oil containing shrimp astaxanthin (MSA) was lower than the estimated production rate. The astaxanthin concentration of MSA was 16.08 μg g −1 powder. The lipid oxidation of MSA was lower than that of MF at 5, 25, and 40 °C during 26 days storage. Degradation of astaxanthin in MSA, fitted with first-order reaction kinetics model, showed that the degradation rate constant for MSA increased with increased storage temperature, which indicated that astaxanthin degraded faster at higher temperature than that at lower temperature. This study demonstrated that astaxanthin extracted from shrimp byproducts using flaxseed oil can be microencapsulated using spray drying technology.