PLA-Based Materials Containing Bio-Plasticizers and Chitosan Modified with Rosehip Seed Oil for Ecological Packaging

Abstract

Several recipes based on PLA, bio-plasticizers, and active agents such as vitamin E and cold-pressed rosehip seed oil encapsulated into chitosan by the emulsion method named here as chitosan modified (CS-M) were elaborated by melt compounding for food packaging applications. Resulted biocomposites have been investigated from the point of view of physical-mechanical, thermal, barrier, antimicrobial, and antioxidant properties to select the formulations with the optimum features to produce food trays and films for packaging applications. The obtained results showed that the elaborated formulations exhibit tensile strength and flexibility dependent on their composition being either rigid or flexible, as well as antimicrobial and antioxidant activity, which will potentially lead to prolonged use for food packaging. The recipe with PLA matrix and 40:60 Lapol®108 as masterbarch/polyethylene glycol (MB/PEG) bio-plasticizers ratio was distinguished by an improvement of over 100 times in terms of flexibility compared with neat PLA, while the highest antioxidant activity (36.27%) was recorded for the sample containing a CS-M and MB/PEG ratio of 60:40. An enhancement of ~50% for the water vapor barrier was recorded for PLA/CS-M_100:0 material. By modulating the MB and PEG bio-plasticizers ratio, the design of new eco-friendly food packaging materials with antimicrobial/antioxidant characteristics by using the existing technologies for processing synthetic polymers (melt mixing, compounding, pressing, thermoforming) has been successfully realized.

Green Coating Polymers in Meat Preservation

“…From a food-contact interaction point of view and biodegradability, these packaging materials have also stirred interest in the research community during the past few years [49]. Among the bio-derived materials, PLA (discussed below in Section 2.2) has received a special attention as one of the most attractive short-use packaging materials due to its good transparency, compostability, high rigidity and modulus at room temperature, and lack of ecotoxicity [50,51]. Very briefly and in the objective of enhancing the long-period stability and reduced toxicity of active packaging systems, several strategies were proposed, among which two biodegradable covalent immobilized antibacterial packaging films for fresh beef preservation were investigated [52].…”

“…For instance, the most abundantly synthesized, monomer-based polymer, already mentioned, is PLA. The production of PLA requires a small amount of energy compared to oil-based polymers, being a biopolymer chemically produced from renewable resources, especially from sugar and starch or cellulose [50]. Moreover, PLA has barrier properties comparable to those of PET [99].…”

Natural Antimicrobials as Additives for Edible Food Packaging Applications: A Review

“…Polylactic acid (PLA) is biosourced and biodegradable and can be used as the base for antimicrobial coated films [4,124]. Among the biodegradable polymers, poly(lactic acid) (PLA) has received great attraction as it can be easily degraded by hydrolysis and enzymatic reactions without leaving harmful or toxic residuals.The Food and Drug Administration has also approved this biopolymer as safe, being produced from renewable products such as corn and sugarcane.…”

Durability of Biodegradable Polymer Nanocomposites

“…Usually, incorporated particles in the matrix restrict polymer chain movements, resulting in elongation values, which are already low for PLA and PHA. The addition of plasticizers is common for PLA and PHA composite materials [ 42 , 43 ]. Studies indicate that PHA can degrade in various environments, including seawater, while PLA needs specific soil conditions [ 44 ].…”