Chitosan Composites in Packaging Industry—Current Trends and Future Challenges

Chitosan-based composites play an important role in food packaging applications and can be used either as films or as edible coatings. Due to their high costs and lower performance (i.e., lower barrier against water vapor, thermal, and mechanical properties) when compared to the traditional petroleum-based plastics, the use of such biopolymers in large-scale is still limited. Several approaches of chitosan composites in the packaging industry are emerging to overcome some of the disadvantages of pristine polymers. Thus, this work intends to present the current trends and the future challenges towards production and application of chitosan composites in the food packaging industry.

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Effect of Organic Modifier Types on the Physical–Mechanical Properties and Overall Migration of Post-Consumer Polypropylene/Clay Nanocomposites for Food Packaging

Polymers ◽

10.3390/polym13091502 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 13 (9) ◽

pp. 1502

Author(s):

Eliezer Velásquez ◽

Sebastián Espinoza ◽

Ximena Valenzuela ◽

Luan Garrido ◽

María José Galotto ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Mechanical Properties ◽

Food Packaging ◽

Clay Nanocomposites ◽

Organic Modifier ◽

Thermal And Mechanical Properties ◽

Chemical Safety ◽

Elongation At Break ◽

Fatty Food ◽

Recycled Plastics ◽

Thermal Stability Of

The deterioration of the physical–mechanical properties and loss of the chemical safety of plastics after consumption are topics of concern for food packaging applications. Incorporating nanoclays is an alternative to improve the performance of recycled plastics. However, properties and overall migration from polymer/clay nanocomposites to food require to be evaluated case-by-case. This work aimed to investigate the effect of organic modifier types of clays on the structural, thermal and mechanical properties and the overall migration of nanocomposites based on 50/50 virgin and recycled post-consumer polypropylene blend (VPP/RPP) and organoclays for food packaging applications. The clay with the most hydrophobic organic modifier caused higher thermal stability of the nanocomposites and greater intercalation of polypropylene between clay mineral layers but increased the overall migration to a fatty food simulant. This migration value was higher from the 50/50 VPP/RPP film than from VPP. Nonetheless, clays reduced the migration and even more when the clay had greater hydrophilicity because of lower interactions between the nanocomposite and the fatty simulant. Conversely, nanocomposites and VPP/RPP control films exhibited low migration values in the acid and non-acid food simulants. Regarding tensile parameters, elongation at break values of PP film significantly increased with RPP addition, but the incorporation of organoclays reduced its ductility to values closer to the VPP.

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Large-Scale Fabrication of Boron Nitride Nanosheets and Their Utilization in Polymeric Composites with Improved Thermal and Mechanical Properties

Advanced Materials ◽

10.1002/adma.200900323 ◽

2009 ◽

Vol 21 (28) ◽

pp. 2889-2893 ◽

Cited By ~ 1094

Author(s):

Chunyi Zhi ◽

Yoshio Bando ◽

Chengchun Tang ◽

Hiroaki Kuwahara ◽

Dimitri Golberg

Keyword(s):

Mechanical Properties ◽

Boron Nitride ◽

Large Scale ◽

Polymeric Composites ◽

Thermal And Mechanical Properties ◽

Boron Nitride Nanosheets

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Improvement in Food Packaging Industry with Biobased Nanocomposites

International Journal of Food Engineering ◽

10.2202/1556-3758.1120 ◽

2007 ◽

Vol 3 (4) ◽

Cited By ~ 41

Author(s):

Zahra Akbari ◽

Talat Ghomashchi ◽

Shahin Moghadam

Keyword(s):

Mechanical Properties ◽

Food Packaging ◽

Gas Permeability ◽

Edible Films ◽

Edible Film ◽

Comprehensive Review ◽

General Review ◽

Flexible Packaging ◽

Packaging Industry ◽

New Challenges

Nanotechnology will become one of the most powerful forces for innovation in the food packaging industry. One such innovation is biobased nanocomposite technology, which holds the key to future advances in flexible packaging. Biobased nanocomposites are produced from incorporation of nanoclay into biopolymers (or Edible films). Advantages of biobased nanocomposites are numerous and possibilities for application in the packaging industry are endless. A comprehensive review of biobased nanocomposite applications in food packaging industry should be necessary because nanotechnology is changing rapidly and the food packaging industry is facing new challenges. This provides a general review of previous works. Many of the works reported in the literature are focused on the production and the mechanical properties of the biobased nanocomposites. Little attention has been paid to gas permeability of biobased nanocomposites. In regard to extensive research on Edible film, this article suggests investigating the replacement of biobased nanocomposites instead of Edible films in different areas of food packaging.

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Utilization Of Sugarcane Bagasse Cellulose-Clay Nanocomposite As A Biodegradable And Antibacterial Packaging Material To Extend The Food's Shelf Life

Khazanah ◽

10.20885/khazanah.vol12.iss2.art43 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 12 (2) ◽

Author(s):

Nadya Fitriani Pitaloka ◽

◽

Ardilla Sriwijayanti ◽

Santi Anisa ◽

Irne Dyah Ayu Wijayanti ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Mechanical Properties ◽

Antibacterial Activity ◽

Water Vapor ◽

Shelf Life ◽

Sugarcane Bagasse ◽

Toxicity Test ◽

Nanocomposite Film ◽

Food Packaging ◽

Antibacterial Properties ◽

Vapor Permeability

Food packaging materials derived from fossil fuels are single-use products that harm the health of living things when disposed of by releasing toxic byproducts. Many communities are starting to be more environmentally friendly by using biopolymers. However, some biopolymers do not have antibacterial properties, thus shortening the food’s shelf life and not applicable in food packaging. Therefore, the purpose of this work is to develop a biodegradable and antimicrobial food packaging from sugarcane bagasse and clay that degrades over time without compromising the food’s shelf life. Cellulose acetate butyrate (cab) was prepared in an amimcl ionic liquid system from sugarcane bagasse. Then the cab was plasticized using peg, resulting a film. Besides, montmorillonite (mmt) clay was modified with aryl ammonium cations using a cation exchange technique to form bmmt. The nanocomposite film was prepared by mixing the plasticized cab and bmmt, then heated at 50c to evaporate the solution. The nanocomposite film was obtained as a prototype of food packaging. Several tests were conducted including mechanical properties, water vapor permeability (wvp), antimicrobial and toxicity test. Based on research by saha et.al, 2008, the nanocomposite film with the cag, peg and bmmt 100:20:3 composition gave the best mechanical properties because of the agglomeration of bmmt. Also, the nanocomposite film had promising wvp properties as a plastic because the clay layers reduced the water vapor diffusion across the polymer matrix. The toxicity test showed that this nanocomposite film was compatible in human blood. Lastly, this nanocomposite film has antibacterial activity against b. Subtilis and p. Cepacia because of the bmmt presence. In conclusion, the nanocomposite film from sugarcane bagasse and clay containing cag, peg and bmmt 100:20:3 is a promising material for a biodegradable and antimicrobial food packaging, because it has sufficient mechanical properties, antibacterial activity, low wvp and is non-toxic.

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Thermomechanical Study and Thermal Behavior of Plasticized Poly(Lactic Acid) Nanocomposites

Solid State Phenomena ◽

10.4028/www.scientific.net/ssp.317.333 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 317 ◽

pp. 333-340

Author(s):

Mohammed Zorah ◽

Izan Roshawaty Mustapa ◽

Norlinda Daud ◽

Nahida Jumah ◽

Nur Ain Syafiqah Sudin ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Mechanical Properties ◽

Thermal Stability ◽

Lactic Acid ◽

Thermal Behavior ◽

Food Packaging ◽

Mechanical Performance ◽

Poly Lactic Acid ◽

Solvent Casting ◽

Thermal And Mechanical Properties ◽

Hot Press

Poly (lactic acid) (PLA) is a useful alternative to petrochemical commodity material used in such as in food packaging industries. Due to its inherent brittleness, low thermal stability, and poor crystallization, it needs to improve its properties, namely in terms of thermal and mechanical performance. The plasticized PLA composites reinforced with nanofiller were prepared by solvent casting and hot press methods. Thermal and mechanical properties, as well as the crystallinity study of these nanocomposites, were investigated to study the effect of tributyl citrate (TBC) and TiO2 on the PLA composites. The addition of TBC improved the flexibility and crystallinity of the composites. Reinforcement of TiO2 was found as a practical approach to improve the mechanical properties, thermal stability, and enhanced crystalline ability for plasticized PLA nanocomposites. Based on the results achieved in this study, the composite with 3.5% nanofiller (pPLATi3.5) presented the optimum set of mechanical properties and improved thermal stability.

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Mechanical Properties and Tribological Behavior of MoS2-Enhanced Cellulose-Based Biocomposites for Food Packaging

Polymers ◽

10.3390/polym13111838 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 13 (11) ◽

pp. 1838

Author(s):

Shih-Chen Shi ◽

Pramod Kumar Mandal ◽

Tao-Hsing Chen

Keyword(s):

Mechanical Properties ◽

Water Vapor ◽

Food Packaging ◽

Load Capacity ◽

Hydroxypropyl Methylcellulose ◽

Water Vapor Permeability ◽

Synthetic Polymers ◽

Tribological Performance ◽

Vapor Permeability ◽

Potential Candidate

Synthetic polymers are the most commonly used polymers in daily life. Therefore, it is necessary to develop environmentally friendly polymers. Hydroxypropyl methylcellulose (HPMC) is a potential candidate for a biopolymer, owing to its unique properties. However, HPMC biopolymers have some disadvantages compared to synthetic polymers. In this study, the mechanical properties and tribological performance of MoS2 additive-enhanced cellulose matrix biocomposites were investigated in order to improve the properties of HPMC. MoS2 was incorporated into the HPMC matrix as a strengthening additive. The mechanical properties, bonding, and water vapor permeability of the composites were analyzed. The mechanical and vapor barrier properties of the HPMC films were significantly enhanced. The ultimate tensile strength and Young’s modulus of the composite films increased with the addition of up to 1 wt% MoS2. The water vapor permeability of HPMC films reduced when additives were incorporated. The wear test proves that the MoS2 additives can improve the tribological performance of the HPMC composite while reducing the friction coefficient. The main reason for enhanced tribological performance is the improvement in load capacity of the composite coating by the MoS2 additive. This MoS2/HPMC biocomposite can be used in food packaging.

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Application of Solution Blow Spinning for Rapid Fabrication of Gelatin/Nylon 66 Nanofibrous Film

Foods ◽

10.3390/foods10102339 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 10 (10) ◽

pp. 2339

Author(s):

Zhichao Yang ◽

Chaoyi Shen ◽

Yucheng Zou ◽

Di Wu ◽

Hui Zhang ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Mechanical Properties ◽

Water Vapor ◽

Composite Film ◽

Food Packaging ◽

Composite Films ◽

Water Vapor Permeability ◽

Vapor Permeability ◽

Nylon 66 ◽

Rapid Fabrication ◽

Solution Blow Spinning

Gelatin (GA) is a natural protein widely used in food packaging, but its fabricated fibrous film has the defects of a high tendency to swell and inferior mechanical properties. In this work, a novel spinning technique, solution blow spinning (SBS), was used for the rapid fabrication of nanofiber materials; meanwhile, nylon 66 (PA66) was used to improve the mechanical properties and the ability to resist dissolution of gelatin films. Morphology observations show that GA/PA66 composite films had nano-diameter from 172.3 to 322.1 nm. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and X-ray indicate that GA and PA66 had strong interaction by hydrogen bonding. Mechanical tests show the elongation at break of the composite film increased substantially from 7.98% to 30.36%, and the tensile strength of the composite film increased from 0.03 MPa up to 1.42 MPa, which indicate that the composite films had the highest mechanical strength. Water vapor permeability analysis shows lower water vapor permeability of 9.93 g mm/m2 h kPa, indicates that GA/PA66 film’s water vapor barrier performance was improved. Solvent resistance analysis indicates that PA66 could effectively improve the ability of GA to resist dissolution. This work indicates that SBS has great promise for rapid preparation of nanofibrous film for food packaging, and PA66 can be applied to the modification of gelatin film.

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Biodegradable polylactic acid (PLA)

Physical Sciences Reviews ◽

10.1515/psr-2020-0072 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 0 (0) ◽

Author(s):

James Goodsel ◽

Samy Madbouly

Keyword(s):

Mechanical Properties ◽

Carbon Nanotubes ◽

Polylactic Acid ◽

Food Packaging ◽

Oily Wastewater ◽

Biodegradable Material ◽

Potential Applications ◽

The Common ◽

Packaging Industry ◽

Processing Techniques

Abstract Polylactic acid (PLA) is a biodegradable material that can be processed using the common processing techniques, such as injection molding, extrusion, and blow molding. PLA has widely been researched and tested due to its biodegradable nature. As a biodegradable material, PLA can be subject to some inherently poor qualities, such as its brittleness, weak mechanical properties, small processing windows, or poor electrical and thermal properties. In order to nullify some of these issues, nanofiller composites have been added to the polymer matrix, such as nanocellulose, nanoclays, carbon nanotubes, and graphene. Dye-clay hybrid nanopigments (DCNP) have been used to explore potential applications in the food packaging industry with promising results. Several different compatibilizers have been studied as well, with the goal of increasing the mechanical properties of blends. A key application for PLA is in wound healing and surgical work, with a few studies described in the present chapter. Finally, the superwettability of dopamine modified PLA is examined, with promising results for separation of oily wastewater.

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