Production of Wheat Flour/PBAT Active Films Incorporated with Oregano Oil Microparticles and Its Application in Fresh Pastry Conservation

Abstract

This study aimed to produce wheat flour and poly (butylene co-terephthalate adipate) films with the addition of free and microencapsulated oregano essential oil by blown extrusion and to evaluate its applicability as an active packaging in the preservation of the Brazilian fresh pastry, known as Pastel. The oregano essential oil microparticles were produced by spray drying and characterized in terms of morphology, encapsulation efficiency, and mean diameter. In the films, the physical, antioxidant, and diffusion kinetics of oregano essential oil were determined. Films with microencapsulated oregano essential oil showed lower tensile strength and Young's modulus and higher elongation, solubility, antioxidant capacity, and diffusion coefficient when compared to the control and free oregano oil films. During 28 days of refrigerated storage, fresh pastry packaged with film with oregano essential oil microparticles presented a lower count of molds and yeasts, compared to pastries packed with control and free oregano oil films. The microencapsulation protected oregano essential oil from extrusion condition shearing and temperature damages during film production, allowing the development of biodegradable active films for application in foods where contamination by molds and yeasts is predominant.

Effect of Low Concentration of SiO2 Nanoparticles on Grape Seed Essential Oil/PBAT Composite Films for Sustainable Food Packaging Application

“…Twisted gas pathways were observed due to the inclusion of NPs in flexible packaging materials [26]. The gas permeabilities of the films were affected by crystallinity, with increased crystallinity decreasing oxygen and water vapor permeability [38]. Finally, it was concluded that there was an overall rise in OP values in all the fabricated films in comparison with the pure PBAT film.…”

“…The water vapor permeability of the films increased with the incorporation of 5 and 10% of GEO into the PBAT films, which may have been due to the loss of inter/intra molecular exchanges among the PBAT matrix, and the presence of hydrophilic GEO induced less crystalline films [36,37]. The hydrophilic nature of the composite film surface was revealed by increasing water contact angle values in Figure 6, whereas the WVP values of nanocomposite film samples 'D' and 'E' increased when evaluated with composite film samples 'B' and 'C', respectively, due to the presence of unpaired double bond oxygen in SiO 2 NPs, which had the highest possibility to react with water and form ortho-silicate [38]. Overall, the WVP values increased for all the prepared films when compared to the pure PBAT film.…”

“…This was due to light scattering on the film surface caused by tiny drops of GEO dispersion in the PBAT polymer, as well as the presence of SiO 2 NPs, which block the passage of light. As a result, this property of the PBAT nanocomposite material may be best suited for food preservation because it reduces the photo-oxidation of organic compounds [38].…”

“…Sustainability 2022, 14, 8073 13 of 16 material may be best suited for food preservation because it reduces the photo-oxidation of organic compounds [38].…”

Evaluation of Hydrophilic and Hydrophobic Silica Particles on the Release Kinetics of Essential Oil Pickering Emulsions

“…Essential oils have attracted great interest because of their excellent biological activities, including antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, antibacterial, and other health benefits . Nevertheless, the application of direct incorporation of essential oils into products is still rare due to their poor physicochemical properties, such as hydrophobicity and low solubility . On the other hand, the sensitivity of essential oils to light, heat, and oxygen also limits their applications.…”