Low-Shear Emulsion Manufacturing by Vapor Condensation and Melting

We are developing two alternative emulsion manufacturing methods at the University of Illinois Chicago: Emulsions by Vapor Condensation (EVC) and Emulsions by Melting (EBM). Both create droplets through phase change rather than high-shear breakup.

WHY IT MATTERS

Emulsions are central to foods, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, coatings, and specialty fluids. Conventional production can require high mechanical energy, cause unwanted heating, and affect sensitive ingredients. These methods may offer gentler droplet formation with less mechanical shear.

EMULSIONS BY VAPOR CONDENSATION (EVC)

EVC forms droplets directly as water or oil vapor condenses at the interface of a surfactant-containing liquid. Rather than breaking pre-existing large droplets, condensation nucleates small droplets that are subsequently dispersed and stabilized by interfacial forces.

We have demonstrated continuous production of both water-in-oil and oil-in-water emulsions. Our newer thin-film EVC platform (EVC-F) uses a cooled substrate and a dispenser-spreader-sweeper mechanism to renew the liquid film and continuously collect the product. In published experiments with olive oil and food-grade surfactants, we achieved:

• Submicron droplets approximately 100–800 nm in diameter, with sub-100 nm droplets under selected conditions.
• Adjustable dispersed-phase fractions up to approximately 25%.
• Benchtop production rates of 17–282 mL/hour over a 90.6 cm² active area.
• Narrow size distributions and stability beyond 30 days for selected formulations.

These results establish laboratory-scale continuous production, not industrial-scale validation.

EMULSIONS BY MELTING (EBM)

EBM uses a complementary thermal route. A frozen dispersed-phase material is placed in an immiscible continuous liquid. During controlled melting, liquid droplets form and separate into the surrounding phase. Process conditions and interfacial formulation provide avenues for controlling droplet generation. This method is particularly attractive for exploring emulsions where mechanical processing or intense cavitation is undesirable.

EVC uses vapor-to-liquid condensation; EBM uses solid-to-liquid melting. Which is preferable depends on formulation and processing needs. EBM is described in a published US patent application.

INDUSTRIAL OPPORTUNITIES

Potential applications include food-grade emulsions, personal-care formulations, pharmaceutical and encapsulation systems, functional coatings, and specialty fluids such as water-in-oil fuel formulations. These are target applications for collaborative validation, not claims of commercial qualification.

WHAT WE SEEK

We welcome sponsored research, joint development, licensing discussions, and industry-led validation projects. Priority activities include benchmarking energy use and production cost against established methods, testing commercially relevant formulations, improving throughput and scalability, and quantifying product stability and reproducibility.

PUBLICATIONS

Anand et al., Advanced Science (2024), DOI: 10.1002/advs.202307443.

Gunipe et al., Journal of Colloid and Interface Science (2026), DOI: 10.1016/j.jcis.2026.140067.

Emulsions by Melting: U.S. Patent Application US20260272794A1.