Production of Cumin Essential oil Nanocapsules Using Nonionic Surfactants

The aim of this study was production of cumin essential oil nanocapsules to stabilize the essential oil by means of microemulsion technique. Microemulsification of essential oil with T20, T60 and T80 as surfactants and ethanol, propanol and butanol as cosurfactants were studied in surfactant:cosurfactant ratio of 1:1 and their phase diagrams were constructed. It was found that microemulsion zone was dependent to the surfactant and cosurfactant type. The experiments showed that the best T80:propanol ratio between 2:1, 1:1 and 1:2 for making the largest area of microemulsion was 2:1. Dynamic light scattering results showed that the particle sizes of the cumin essential oil capsules containing 1% wt. oil were less than 20 nm. Cumin essential oil release from microemulsion systems was more efficient than noncapsulated essential oil, making these systems good vehicles for drugs.