Effects of non-solvent and starch solution on formation of starch nanoparticles by nanoprecipitation

Starch nanoparticles (SNPs) were prepared with corn starch dimethylsulfoxide (DMSO) solution through nanoprecipitation. Effects of non-solvent nature, solvent/non-solvent (S/NS) volume ratio, concentration of starch solution, and molecular weight of starch on size of the SNPs were investigated. Solubility and interaction parameters were used to describe affinity of solvent and non-solvent. It was found that the stronger the affinity, the smaller the mean size of the SNPs. Changes of S/NS volume ratio from 1: 5 to 1: 30 led to slight decrease in mean size of the SNPs and considerable difference in morphology of the SNPs. The size of the SNPs increased with concentration of starch solution used for precipitation. Through acid hydrolysis, molecular weight of starch was reduced, which resulted in significant decrease in mean size of the SNPs. The lyophilized SNPs could be re-dispersed in water.