Flavour Ester Synthesis by Immobilized Lipases: A Research Overview With Industrial Relevance

Abstract

Flavour esters are high-value compounds widely used in food, beverage, cosmetic, pharmaceutical and household formulations, and their market relevance has increased alongside consumer demand for clean-label ingredients. In this context, biotechnological routes have gained prominence as alternatives to conventional chemical synthesis, particularly because lipases can catalyse esterification and transesterification reactions under mild conditions and often perform well in low-water media that favour ester formation over hydrolysis. Immobilization further enhances enzyme stability, recovery and reuse, increasing the industrial attractiveness of these systems. This study presents a bibliometric and content analysis of scientific publications on flavour ester synthesis using lipases, indexed in the Web of Science Core Collection between 2000 and 2024. Publications were selected and analysed using VOSviewer to identify publication trends, leading countries, authors, journals and recurring research themes. Recent experimental papers (2020–2024) showed a clear predominance of lipase immobilized in situ instead of commercial preparations (84%) and a strong preference for solvent-free systems. The literature also indicates a growing emphasis on process intensification, catalyst stability and industrial applicability. However, despite the large number of studies focused on reaction optimization and high conversion yields, environmental and techno-economic assessments remain scarce and highly heterogeneous. Overall, the results highlight the consolidation of immobilized lipases as key biocatalysts for sustainable flavour ester synthesis and underscore the need for more standardized economic and life-cycle analyses to support industrial scale-up.