Alginate-Arabinoxylan Composite Films with Enhanced Mechanical Strength and Functional Properties for Potential Food...

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Food Science
• Biotechnology

Background:

• Growing concern over plastic pollution necessitates sustainable and eco-friendly packaging solutions.
• Alginate, derived from seaweed, is a renewable feedstock for edible biofilms but suffers from poor mechanical strength.
• Arabinoxylans from maize bran offer a potential solution to improve alginate-based materials.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and characterize a novel alginate composite biofilm incorporating maize bran derived arabinoxylans.
• To enhance the mechanical properties, water-holding capacity, and antimicrobial activity of alginate biofilms.
• To evaluate the potential of this bio-composite film for food packaging applications.

Main Methods:

• Preparation of alginate composite biofilms with varying concentrations of maize arabinoxylans.
• Optimization of composite film composition (alginate, glycerol, maize arabinoxylans).
• Characterization of mechanical properties (tensile strength, elongation), water-holding capacity, and antimicrobial activity (incorporating clove essential oil).

Main Results:

• Adding 2.5% maize arabinoxylans increased alginate film tensile strength by 3.1 times.
• Optimized composite film (2.5% alginate, 1% glycerol, 1.5% maize arabinoxylans) showed 4.9x higher tensile strength (6.88 MPa) and 3.0x higher elongation (96.4%).
• Water-holding capacity increased significantly, and the film with clove essential oil prevented bacterial growth on raw meat for five days.

Conclusions:

• The alginate-maize arabinoxylan composite biofilm demonstrates significantly improved mechanical properties and functionality.
• Incorporation of clove essential oil provides effective antimicrobial activity, crucial for food preservation.
• This novel bio-composite film presents a promising sustainable alternative for food packaging, addressing plastic pollution concerns.