ABSTRACT
This chapter focuses on oil-in-water (O/W) nanoemulsions and nanodispersions, as the O/W system is more relevant and widely applied in the food industry. Nanoemulsions and nanodispersions are similar and mostly used in the food industry for the encapsulation and delivery of bioactive compounds. Regardless of the methods used for the preparation of a nanoemulsion, the processing and formulation parameters are some of the aspects that must be carefully considered to obtain a stable nanoemulsion with the desired properties. The radii of the nanoparticles are smaller than the wavelength of visible light, which means that the nanoparticles can only scatter light weakly, allowing more light to be transmitted through the nanoemulsion. The surface charge can be considered as an important characteristic because it allows users to predict how a nanoemulsion will fare when applied in food or beverages, which invariably contain charged components such as salt.
