Investigation of the solubility enhancement mechanism of rebaudioside D using a solid dispersion technique with potassium sorbate as a carrier

Rebaudioside (Reb) D is a high intensity, natural sweetener that shows great potential for substituting sugar in sweetened beverages. However, Reb D is poorly water soluble, and thus, a solid dispersion technique was recently established to enhance its solubility. The purpose of this study was to elucidate the solubility enhancement mechanism of this solid dispersion material by employing Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), Raman spectroscopy, Fourier Transform Infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) and X-ray Diffraction (XRD). Potassium sorbate (KS) was chosen as the carrier and two different concentration ratios were investigated as solid dispersions (SD) and as physical mixtures (PM). Our data demonstrated the possible mechanism for enhancing solubility through solid dispersion through increased surface area/volume ratio and hydrogen bonding between Reb D and KS. The interaction between the two components were also related to the different concentration ratios, therefore an optimisation of the ratio is important to produce a soluble and stable complex.