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ARS Home » Midwest Area » Peoria, Illinois » National Center for Agricultural Utilization Research » Plant Polymer Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #345654
Research Project: Conversion of Polysaccharides and Other Bio-based Materials to High-Value, Commercial Products

Location: Plant Polymer Research

Title: Preparation and characterization of carboxymethyl cellulose films with embedded essential oils

Author
item Biswas, Atanu
item FURTADO, R - Embrapa
item BASTOS, M - Embrapa
item BENEVIDES, S - Embrapa
item OLIVEIRA, M - Embrapa
item Boddu, Veera
item Cheng, Huai

Submitted to: Journal of Materials Science Research
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 7/18/2018
Publication Date: 7/20/2018
Citation: Biswas, A., Furtado, R.F., Bastos, M.S.R., Benevides, S.D., Oliveira, M.A., Boddu, V.M., Cheng, H.N. 2018. Preparation and characterization of carboxymethyl cellulose films with embedded essential oils. Journal of Materials Science Research. 7(4):16-25.

Interpretive Summary: There is current interest in producing food packaging materials that can increase the shelf-life of fruits and vegetables and minimize food spoilage in supermarkets while at the same time not generating plastic waste that causes long-term disposal problems. One solution is to use edible and biodegradable packaging film based on polysaccharides, such as carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC). In this work, films were produced from two CMC materials with different degrees of substitution (DS) that encapsulated four different essential oils (eugenol, rosemary, coriander, and nutmeg) that are known to have antimicrobial properties. The mechanical properties, opacity, and water vapor permeation of the films were evaluated. This research presents a new kind of film which will benefit food packaging and edible film manufacturers.

Technical Abstract: There is current interest in using biobased materials to produce food packaging that can increase the shelf-lives of fruits and vegetables and minimize food spoilage in supermarkets and at the same time not generating plastic waste that causes long-term disposal problems. A good candidate for such materials is the polysaccharide, such as carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC), which is edible and biodegradable. In this work films were produced from two CMC materials with different degrees of substitution (DS) that encapsulated four different essential oils (eugenol, rosemary oil, coriander oil, and nutmeg oil) that are known to have beneficial properties for food applications. The mechanical properties, opacity, and water vapor permeation were evaluated. In general, the essential oil-embedded CMC with the two DS values behaved rather differently. In particular, the essential oil-embedded CMC with 0.7 DS degree of substitution gave stronger and more flexible films and may be more suited for use in food packaging.