Influence of a commercial monoacylglycerol on the crystallization mechanism of palm oil as compared to its pure constituents

- PO was blended with a commercial emulsifier and with its pure main constituents.
- DSC, XRD and PLM were used to study the crystallization processes of the blends.
- The MAGs initiate the crystallization process by crystallizing in α.
- This is followed by a transformation to sub-α.
- The crystallization of the PO TAGs occurs earlier and coarser crystals are formed.

The effect of a commercial monoacylglycerol (MAG), Myverol™ 18 04-PK (Myverol), on the non-isothermal crystallization mechanism of palm oil (PO) was investigated and compared to the effect of the two main constituents of Myverol, monopalmitin and monostearin. The MAGs were added to PO in concentrations up to 8% and the blends were studied using different techniques (differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), X-ray diffraction (XRD) and polarized light microscopy (PLM)). The DSC crystallization profiles revealed an earlier onset of crystallization along with extra crystallization peaks when MAGs were added to PO. Combined with X-ray results, it could be concluded that the crystallization process of the blends is initiated by the MAGs crystallizing in the α form and then transforming to sub-α. The effect on the non-isothermal crystallization of the PO TAGs is confined to an earlier onset of crystallization, probably through a template effect, and an effect on the crystal structure coarseness.