Encapsulation of Sucralose Into Cyclodextrin Metal–Organic Frameworks: Preparation, Structure Characterization, and Evaluation of Thermal Stability

Abstract

Electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes) have acquired more popularity in recent years, mainly because they are supposed to be less harmful than regular cigarettes. The thermal stability of sucralose (Suc) as sweetener in e-cigarettes is important. This study aimed to synthesize sucrose loaded cyclodextrin-metal–organic frameworks (CD-MOFs) from potassium hydroxide, crystallized with β-cyclodextrin (β-CD) and γ-CD, and their complex thermal stability properties were further evaluated. The basic β-CD MOFs reaches high sucrose payloads of 92.54 wt%, corresponding to a molar ratio of 8:1 between sucrose and β-CD. Thermal stability analysis indicates a substantial improvement, with the Suc-β-CD-MOF complexes displaying an onset decomposition temperature of 197°C, representing a 125°C increase relative to that of free sucrose. In comparison to Suc-β-CD-MOF, sucrose coated with β-CD-MOF maintained 73.4% at 80°C for 12 h, with the release rate reduced by about 26.6%. These findings demonstrate the potential of β-CD-MOF as effective carriers for sucrose thermal stability enhancement.