Intercalation of lecithins for preparation of layered nanohybrid materials and adsorption of limonene

Abstract The intercalation of biosurfactants (lysolecithin and lecithin) in layered clay mineral supports was investigated to assess the suitability of the resulting nanohybrid materials as flavor and fragrance delivery system. The protonated biosurfactant molecules (pH = 2.3) were intercalated into the Na-montmorillonite, whereas the deprotonated biosurfactants (pH ~ 12) were intercalated into Mg–Al layered double hydroxides. The amount of lysolecithin and lecithin bound to the layered adsorbents was estimated by measuring adsorption isotherms. The basal spacing obtained from X-ray diffraction measurements suggested that the molecules are arranged in parallel with the layers of montmorillonite, whereas in the case of layered double hydroxides, the adsorbed molecules are in a vertical position between the layers. The interaction of layered adsorbents and biosurfactants was further evidenced by infrared spectroscopy. The intercalated montmorillonite and LDH particles were then probed for their ability to intercalate limonene molecules. Only the lysolecithins modified samples adsorbed limonene. The theoretical sizes of molecules and their possible arrangement between the layers were modeled by HyperChem 7.0 molecular calculations to correlate the ability to bind the lecithins in the confined space of the layered materials.