Comparison of Pickering emulsion stabilized by nanocellulose-protein composite particles through adsorption and grafting

As a biological material, cellulose with a low carbon footprint is better for preparing emulsions than traditional surfactant emulsions. However, the high hydrophilicity of nanocellulose is not conducive to its adsorption at the oil–water interface, resulting in a low emulsification capacity of Pickering emulsion. This work applied 2,2,6,6-tetramethy1-1-piperidyloxy(TEMPO)-mediated oxidation and sodium periodate oxidation to prepare nanocellulose with carboxyl and aldehyde groups, and studied the effects of bonding forms on the hydrophilicity of bovine serum albumin (BSA)/nanocellulose composites. Compared with pure components, the composite products prepared by adsorbing or grafting had improved effects in the emulsification by increasing viscosity and reducing surface wettability. With adsorbed BSA, the composite showed a higher hydrophobicity, and the corresponding Pickering emulsion had an extended oil fraction of 60