A new design for obtaining of white zein micro- and nanoparticles powder: antisolvent-dialysis method

The objective of this work was propose antisolvent-dialysis as a new, easy, one-step and reproducible method for obtaining white zein micro- and nanoparticles powder. Firstly, the study by SEM of white zein powder predicted micro- and nanoparticles with spherical morphology and average diameters of 243.2 +/- 94.5 nm for nanoparticles and 0.74 +/- 0.2 mu m for microparticles. UV-Vis predicted lower absorbance of 250-500 nm for white zein powder compared to commercial yellow zein powder. FT-IR showed shifting of the main bands to the right, due to changes in particle-shaped microstructure that acquires white zein powder compared to yellow zein powder. In TGA white zein powder showed a decomposition range from 214 to 400 degrees C, while yellow zein powder from 240 to 400 degrees C. Therefore, antisolvent-dialysis is new method to obtain white zein micro- and nanoparticles with potential applications such as polymer matrix and white natural coloring.