Nam-geon Lee
Ewha Womans University · Engineering
About the Lab
Professor Nam-geon Lee's research lab specializes in advanced food processing technologies with a focus on 3D food printing, oleogel development, and functional food materials. The lab investigates the rheological behavior, printability, and structural accuracy of novel food inks and fat analogs—such as beeswax-based oleogels and plant proteins—enabling customized food fabrication with tailored textures, nutrition, and sensory properties. Key research directions include optimizing ink formulations for high-precision 3D printing, developing sustainable fat replacers, and engineering bio-based fiber mats with antibacterial and mechanical functionality. The lab integrates material science, food engineering, and analytical techniques like FTIR, SEM, and texture analysis to advance innovative food systems.
Research Overview
Research Output Trend
Figures are computed from collected data and may differ slightly.
Selected Papers
11This study focuses on improving the 3D printability of pea protein with the help of food inks designed for jet-type 3D printers. Initially, the food ink base was formulated using nanocellulose-alginate with a gradient of native potato starch and its 3D printability was evaluated. The 3D-printed structures using only candidates for the food ink base formulated with or without potato starch exhibited dimensional accuracy exceeding 95% on both the X and Y axes. However, the accuracy of stacking on
In this study, we investigated the optimal conditions for 3D structure printing of alternative fats that have the textural properties of lard using beeswax (BW)-based oleogel by a statistical analysis. Products printed with over 15% BW oleogel at 50% and 75% infill level (IL) showed high printing accuracy with the lowest dimensional printing deviation for the designed model. The hardness, cohesion, and adhesion of printed samples were influenced by BW concentration and infill level. For multi-re
In the field of food processing, 3D food printing can be one of the foremost methods which allows to laminate various type of complex food structures. The technology makes it possible to manufacture food products with desired internal structures, tastes, flavors and nutrition and is attracting attention as an innovative way to customize food to meet each customer's needs. 3D printing can produce a wide range of foods with different textures and viscosities using the cartridge loaded with materia
The aim of this study was to develop and characterize an antibacterial fiber mat composed of chitosan, zein, and gelatin. The fiber mat was prepared using the adhesion between probes by a 3D printer, and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), water contact angle measurement, scanning electron microscope (SEM) and mechanical tests were performed on this. The addition of chitosan was able to reduce the diameter of single fibers by reducing the viscosity, and the fiber mat showed a uniform
Recently, compared to traditional food production systems, 3D food printing has gained a lot of interest because of the potential benefits of being able to customized food products fabrication in colour, shape, texture, flavor and even nutrition. Successful printing of food objects in 3D food printing is critical, and high accuracy and precision food printing technology is required to reproduce delicate and complex food 3D structures. In 3D food printing, the properties of food materials, such a
Engineering fibrous scaffolds with anisotropic architecture, tunable mechanics, and hydrated stability is essential for constructing physiologically relevant muscle tissue models. Here, we introduce gelatin–chitosan (GC) composite scaffolds fabricated via a tensile spinning process, enabling the formation of continuously aligned fibers without toxic solvents. Systematic modulation of chitosan content governed precursor viscoelasticity, which translated into controlled fiber alignment, pore chara
Inkjet printing technology has been applied to the fabrication of food products with high precision/resolution and minimal material waste. This technique has been applied only to materials with low viscosity because of mechanical limitation. And, it has been challengeable to build 3D structure of food with high resolution for high viscous food materials. In this study, using an ink‐jet‐type, drop‐on‐demand (DOD)‐based piezo‐electric jet printer, RS2 type resistant starch, which is known as “rigi
The purpose of this study was to evaluate printing of various food internal structures using the beeswax (BW) oleogels with varying concentrations and explore the possibility of the fat replacement. Therefore, this work descibed the rheological properties of BW oleogels and the lard, as well as the printing precision and texture characteristics of printed products. Rheological measurements such as flow curves, temperature tests, strain tests and frequency tests were performed to evaluate the pro
Recently, a major substance in Turmeric (Curcuma longa. L) called curcumin was found to have many positive effects: it is an antioxidant, tumor suppressor, anti‐inflammatory, anti‐bacterial, blood pressure reducer, and obesity suppressor, so a lot of research and manufacture is being conducted to turn it into a health supplement. However, curcumin usually poor solubility, low bioavailability, rapid metabolism. Thus, curcumin was selected as a subject for a proof of concept model to amend it wate
Meat substitutes are usually produced with plant‐based materials (such as soybeans, lupines, chickpeas, etc.) which have the protein contents, meat‐like appearance, taste and textures. To produce meat substitutes, extrusion‐cooking has been adapted as a High Temperature Short Time (HTST) rendering method for starchy and proteinaceous foodstuffs into intermediate products texturized and shaped usually by gradient expansion. This technology mainly contributes to generation of fibrated (meat muscle
Collagen is the most prevalent scaffold material for in vitro skin models. The major limitation of collagen scaffold is its mechanical weakness, resulting in severe contraction during differentiation. Here, we presented a slime-webbed scaffold composed of perpendicularly stacked fibers with large pores. This slime-webbed scaffold did not contract while improving molecular transport and achieving comparable cell viability. Fibroblasts were seeded into the slime-webbed scaffold to mimic the dermal
Research Areas
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