Montmorillonite@chitosan-poly (ethylene oxide) nanofibrous membrane enhancing poly (vinyl alcohol-co-ethylene)...

A montmorillonite@chitosan-poly (ethylene oxide) nanofibrous membrane (MMT@CPF) enhancing poly (vinyl alcohol-co-ethylene) (EVOH-MMT@CPF) composite film was developed by using a space-filling embedding method. The structure of EVOH-MMT@CPF was characterized, and the thermal stability, mechanical and barrier properties of the films were investigated. The CPF was fabricated via electrospinning technique and the self-assembly of MMT nano-platelets on CPF was achieved by the driving of electrostatic interactions between MMT nano-platelet and CPF. The experimental results indicated that the well-kept MMT@CPF after embedding in the EVOH matrix significantly improved the thermal stability and mechanical properties of the film, and also endowed the film with outstanding oxygen barrier (0.2×10^-16cm³cmcm^-2s^-1Pa^-1) and good moisture barrier (4.6×10^-6gmm^-2s^-1atm^-1 under a relative humidity of 90%) by prolonging the tortuous paths for molecule penetration. The composite film may have a great potential application in food packaging.