Abstract:As one of the most popular sports nutrition supplements, creatine faces problems such as poor solubility, low dissolution and the generation of by-products after dissolution that can reduce its efficacy. The author aims to prepare a rapid-dissolving creatine supplement and systematically characterize its creatine retention rate, dissolution characteristics, crystal structure and absorption efficiency. Based on the study of creatine solubility and creatinine conversion rate, the formula and process parameters of high-pressure microfluidic and spray drying were determined with the creatine addition mass fraction and conversion rate as the main factors. The formulation ratio was m（creatine）∶m（sucrose）∶m（maltodextrin）=4∶3∶3. The preparation process involved dispersing with water to achieve a total solid mass fraction of 10%, homogenizing with a 50 MPa high-pressure microfluidization for 4 times, and then spray drying at 180 ℃. The results of the dissolution experiment indicated that the dissolution time of the instant creatine supplement was 2.43 min within the solubility range, which was 11.5 times shorter than that of the commercial creatine raw material, showing a significant improvement in solubility. The results of X-ray diffraction (XRD) and particle size experiment showed that creatine was transformed into an amorphous state after the preparation process adopted. When the concentration was higher than the solubility, creatine recrystallized into micron-sized particles, allowing for uniform dispersion in water. The simulated gastrointestinal digestion experiment showed that the dissolution of the improved instant creatine powder in simulated gastric fluid could reach 81.7% within 1 minute, significantly higher than the commercial creatine raw material (43.9%).
