What is the difference between suspension and emulsion?

After an object is incorporated into a liquid, it will appear in different shapes. The most common ones are suspensions and emulsions. Whether in daily life or in study and work, many people tend to confuse suspensions and emulsions. In fact, these are two completely different liquid forms. In order to give everyone a full understanding of these two forms, their differences are introduced in detail below.

The difference between suspension and emulsion:

Suspension: An inhomogeneous, unstable mixture of small solid particles dispersed in a liquid. Examples: blood, muddy water

Emulsion: An inhomogeneous, unstable mixture of small droplets dispersed in a liquid. Example: milk

definition:

Suspension: A mixture formed by small solid particles suspended in liquid is called a suspension.

Emulsion: A mixture formed by small droplets dispersed in a liquid is called an emulsion.

Differences:

Suspensions are small solid particles, and emulsions are small liquid droplets. This is the difference between suspension and emulsion.

Application of emulsion in food:

Emulsifiers can make the components in the multiphase system of food blend together to form a stable and uniform form, improve the internal structure, simplify and control the processing process, and improve food quality. Its important applications in food processing can be summarized as follows:

1. Emulsification The most widely used application of emulsifiers in the food industry is its emulsification effect. Most foods contain two types of components with different solubility properties. Emulsifiers help them to be evenly and stably distributed, thereby preventing oil and water separation, preventing sugar and fat from blooming, and preventing protein coagulation or precipitation.

2. The emulsifier can combine with the straight chain starch to form a stable complex, so it is difficult for the straight chain starch to crystallize after the starch product is cooled, which helps to delay the aging of starch and is a soft preservative for starch food. Emulsifiers can form hydrogen bonds or coupling complexes with lipids and proteins in flour, acting as dough conditioners, allowing bread, steamed buns, dumplings, cakes, etc. to remain fresh, soft and easy to slice for a longer period of time.

3. Improving the structure of crystalline substances Emulsifiers have a controlling effect on the formation, precipitation and crystal form of solid fat crystals. In chocolate, emulsifiers can promote the crystallization of cocoa butter to become fine and uniform; in frozen foods such as ice cream, emulsifiers with high HLB values ​​can prevent sugars and other substances from crystallizing; in margarine, emulsifiers with low HLB values ​​can prevent fats from crystallizing.

4. Emulsifiers have the function of reducing viscosity. Therefore, they can be used as release agents for foods such as biscuits and chewing gum, and make the surface of the products smooth. In chocolate, emulsifiers can reduce costs and viscosity, improve the fluidity of materials, and facilitate production operations; in chewing gum, emulsifiers can promote the dispersion of various ingredients into the resin, mix them evenly in a short time at low temperature, and make the product non-sticky, with plasticity and softness; in the sugar industry, emulsifiers reduce the viscosity of molasses and increase the recovery rate of sugar.

5. Foaming Effect Sometimes it is necessary to form good foam during food processing. A good foam structure is necessary in foods such as cakes, frozen desserts and decorations on food. Foam is produced by gas dispersed in liquid, and the saturated fatty acid chains in the emulsifier can stabilize liquid foam. Therefore, emulsifiers can be added to produce foam.