Recap
- Drainage is the process of milk percolating through a layer of foam. Drainage rates are faster when foams are made of bubbles with larger diameters.
- Rheology in foam science is the measure of a foam’s firmness. For latte art purposes, we need foams to be firm to create a silky texture, but we also need a low yield stress to allow bubbles to slide past each other for ease of pouring.
- Lipolysis is a process wherein triglycerides are damaged and break apart into free fatty acids. The process of lipolysis causes the free fatty acids, which are surface active, to displace the stabilizing surfactant whey proteins from the bubble films, causing foams to rapidly break up.
- Ostwald ripening: Gases in air bubbles having relatively higher air pressure diffuse into neighbouring bubbles having relatively lower air pressure, causing them to inflate.
Glossary
Adsorption The process through which atoms, ions, or molecules spread across the surface of a material to form a film
Aeration level The proportional increase in the volume of milk expressed as a percentage after the introduction of entrained air; volume gains added to the milk as a result of condensed H20 also contribute to this volume increase.
Amphiphilic Quality of a molecule which has hydrophobic and hydrophilic components
Closed-cell foam A foam wherein each cell occupies a distinctly separate pocket, surrounded by solid material
Drainage The separation of the liquid and air fractions of a foam, promoted by gravity and capillary action
Hydrolysis The chemical breakdown of a molecule caused by an interaction with water
Hydrophilic The tendency of a substance to mix with or dissolve into water