Last year I was involved in a research project dealing with the relationship between solubility and deliquescence of crystalline ingredients. I looked at the ingredients overall and also grouped them into collections such as salts, sugars, emulsifiers, etc. This could should potential relationships between ingredients and between ingredient groups. The result was slightly inconclusive with a negative correlation. I saw relationships within ingredient groups hinting toward similar structures. In between ingredient collections, there was less of a relationship seen. This indicated that more ingredients needed to be studied. More research could have potential applications on how structure influences deliquescence and solubility. This would give a better indication as to how to store dry drink mixes.

This year, I am working on a different deliquescence-based experiment within Dr. Mauer's lab. This project deals with the relationship between deliquescence and the formation of a crystal-hydrate. When deliquescent crystalline ingredients begin to interact with water surrounding them, a few transitions occur. First, the water starts to adsorb on the outside of a particle. After a few layers of water form (normally around five), water begins to absorb into the particle — this is called the point of deliquescence, as I investigated above. Prior to deliquescence, however, a hydrate can be formed when the water becomes a part of the crystal matrix. This can be a big problem because water can be within the powder without it being apparent. Hydrate formation can affect three big components of powders. These include ingredient stability, water migration out of the crystal matrix, and purity problems with assumed anhydrous ingredients. The goal of this research project is to determine if a polymer can prevent hydrate formation prior to deliquescence. This result could have a huge application in the powdered beverage industry. If hydrate formation can be inhibited, that would widen the range of storage environments allowable for products.

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