Fabrication of extra virgin olive oil alginate beads: a study on the effect of concentration and distance towards beads’ characteristics

Extra virgin olive oil (EVOO), renowned for its health benefits, is now emerging as a trending and convenient health supplement. Despite its nutritional advantages, the bitter taste and the limited availability of soft gelatin capsules in the market often reduce treatment compliance. Thus, this study aimed to encapsulate EVOO in alginate beads with consistent size and spherical shape by optimizing the EVOO concentration and the extrusion distance. The research was conducted using varying concentrations of 1% (w/v), 2% (w/v), and 3% (w/v) while extrusion distances at 5 cm, 10 cm, and 15 cm. The size and shape of the beads were assessed through image analysis using Image J software. The spherical beads were successfully fabricated with a uniform size below 2.5 mm at 1% (w/v) EVOO concentration and the extrusion distance between the nozzle tips and the gelation bath solutions was optimized at 5 cm. The resulting beads exhibited an average diameter of 1.844 ± 0.02 mm with a sphericity factor of 0.005 ± 0.002. The study demonstrated that both the concentration and extrusion distance significantly influenced the size and shape of the beads