ABSTRACT
Encapsulation techniques have been developed as an approach to modify or protect sensitive molecules and substances to preserve their activity. The encapsulation process involves the entrapment of a substance by forming a wall around it. This chapter is an overview of an emerging technology for encapsulation, the electrohydrodynamic processing (EHD) that is used for micro- and nano-encapsulation of active substances and sensitive compounds for multisectorial applications. Electrohydrodynamic processing is used for encapsulation that needs neither temperature nor expensive equipment, and the use of organic solvents can be avoided by adjusting some processing conditions (i.e., use of molten polymers). EHD constitutes the basis for electrospinning (ES) that allows the production of continuous and uniform polymeric fibers with diameters ranging from the nano to micron scales and electrospray (ESP) for entrapping active compounds inside micro- and nanosized particles. The basic principles of ES and ESP, the parameters affecting the processes, as well as their applications are described in detail in this chapter following a comprehensive review of the literature.
