Electrospun cellulose acetate and poly(vinyl chloride) nanofiber mats containing silver nanoparticles for antifungi packaging

Abstract

Nanofiber mats of poly(vinyl chloride) (PVC) and cellulose acetate (CA) encapsulated with silver (Ag) nanoparticles were fabricated via electrospinning for potential use as antimicrobial food packaging materials. 16 wt% PVC was prepared in 1:1 w/w tetrahydrofuran-N,N-dimethylformamide while 16 wt% CA was prepared in 3:2 (w/w) Acetone-N,N-dimethylformamide. Scanning electron microscopy analysis showed that thinner fibers could be electrospun from cellulose acetate as compared to poly(vinyl chloride) at the same solution concentrations with fiber diameters ranging from 70 to 130 nm for cellulose acetate and 180-340 nm for poly(vinyl chloride). Nanofiber diameter reduced with addition and increase of silver nanoparticles from 0 to 1 wt%. Due to the smaller cellulose acetate nanofiber diameter, its mats had lower air permeability rates. Tensile strength tests indicated that the nanofiber mats had marginal to good tensile strength values relative to film based packaging materials. Antimicrobial examination of the nanofiber mats against yeast and mould indicated that there was inhibited growth of the microorganisms on mats containing silver nanoparticles.

Prospects of Polymeric Nanofibers Loaded with Essential Oils for Biomedical and Food-Packaging Applications

“…From the mechanical test results, it was observed that as the amount of TTO oil increased, the strength and strain values also improved. PU nanofibers containing 5% TTO showed more significant in vitro antibacterial activity against Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus than control PU nanofibers [ 161 , 162 , 163 ]. The cell counting kit-8 assay performed on NIH-3T3 cells revealed that each sample’s cell proliferation with different TTO contents was similar to the control group.…”

Nanohybrid Antifungals for Control of Plant Diseases: Current Status and Future Perspectives

“…To prevent fungal growth and mycotoxin production in food materials and packaging; hybrid nanofiber mats composed of cellulose acetate encapsulated with AgNPs were prepared by electrospinning. Due to close tight assembly of packaging in food materials, these nanofiber mats allowed low penetration of air permeability preventing fungal growth, and silver nanoparticles inherently inhibited the growth of yeast and molds [ 73 ]. Thus, these nanocomposite materials have shown great potential for future applications in the food packaging and preservation industry.…”

Investigation of mechanical properties of electrospun poly (vinyl chloride) polymer nanoengineered composite

“…The high tensile elongation is evident as well as the presence of a high modulus and a low modulus region on the plot as has been previously described for randomly aligned nanofiber mats. 29 The high modulus region indicates the breaking of adhesion points between the nanofibers upon application of tensile load while the low modulus region indicates when the nanofibers are sliding over each other after the adhesion points have all been severed.…”

“…As such, the polymer has been electrospun successfully using some of these solvents where the properties of the nanofiber mats have been reported to be subject to type of solvent, solution properties, and process settings. [26][27][28][29] Investigations on the use of PVC nanofibers in nonwoven form have shown that they possess excellent filtration properties and reach sufficiently high filtration efficiencies. 30,31 In light of the advantages of the electrospinning process and the unique properties of electrospun nanofibers, this study aims to demonstrate the development of a PVC nanofiber composite membrane having adequate mechanical properties for particular filtration applications.…”