Surface properties, thermal, and mechanical characteristics of poly(vinyl alcohol)–starch‐bacterial cellulose composite films

Abstract

Nanocomposite films for food packaging applications were developed using bacterial cellulose (BC) nanofibers in different amount in a poly(vinyl alcohol)/starch (PVA/St) matrix. In search of a better method to reduce the harmful ingredients in food packaging, the cellulose nanofibers were obtained by the mechanical defibrillation of BC pellicles thus avoiding the addition of chemicals in the final packaging material. Improved mechanical performances were obtained starting from just 1% BC nanofibers in PVA/St. Atomic force microscopy images showed a uniform dispersion of BC nanofibers on the surface of nanocomposites. A twofold increase of both tensile strength and modulus was obtained for 2 wt % BC in the composite. BC nanofibers have greatly improved the barrier properties of PVA/St matrix, a twofold increase of water vapor permeability being obtained for only 2 wt % BC nanofibers in the composite film. PVA/St/2BC was proposed as a high potential material for food packaging applications. V C 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J.Appl. Polym. Sci. 2018, 135, 45800.

Nanocellulose as a natural source for groundbreaking applications in materials science: Today’s state

“…Technical sector -Especially for technical applications such as fuel cells, (transparent) electrically conductive membranes, and loudspeaker vibration films, there has been extensive R&D on BNC composites over the past years [10]. Recent results focus on applications in the area of packaging [149,150], water absorption [151] and supercapacitors [152,153], as well as optical devices [154][155][156][157][158][159][160]. In such applications, either BNC itself is reinforced by additives [161][162][163][164] or BNC serves as the reinforcing material, e.g., for synthetic polymers [165,166].…”

Bacterial cellulose films with ZnO nanoparticles and propolis extracts: Synergistic antimicrobial effect

“…Thus, BC and BC composite materials have gained a lot of attention not only in water splitting or waste treatment applications 6,7 , proton conducting membranes 8 , supercapacitors, solar cells and transparent displays 9,10 but also in the field of wound dressings 11,12 , food packaging 13–16 , tissue engineering 17,18 and superabsorbent in agriculture applications to improve the pedoclimate conditions for arid soils 19 .…”

Biocomposites of poly(lactic acid) and lactic acid oligomer‐grafted bacterial cellulose: It's preparation and characterization

“…Bacterial cellulose has superior mechanical properties due to its better arrangement of fibers which results in higher crystallinity. To utilize its properties, BC has been utilized in a variety of polymers as a reinforcement namely, polyaniline (PANi), polyvinyl alcohol (PVA), polycaprolactone, and so on . It is noteworthy to mention that BC are hydrophilic in nature which limits its dispersion into the hydrophobic polymer matrix ultimately affecting the interfacial adhesion between BC and polymer thus severely affecting the overall properties of the biocomposites To achieve a better dispersion of BC, a masterbatch (MB) of OLLA‐ g ‐BC was obtained upon in situ condensation polymerization reaction of lactic acid solution pre‐incorporated with bacterial cellulose.…”