Transforming waste materials into valuable commodities is a promising strategy to alleviate challenges associated with managing solid waste, benefiting both the environment and human well-being. This study is focused towards harnessing the potential of waste eggshell microparticles (ESMP) (0.10, 0.15, 0.20 g/150 mL) as reinforcing biofiller and orange peel essential oil (OPEO) (14 %, 25 % and 36 %, w/w) as bioactive agent with pectin (2.80, 2.85, 2.90, and 3.00 g/150 mL) to fabricate five different biocomposite films using particle dispersion and solvent casting technique. The addition of ESMP and OPEO progressively increased film thickness and led to variations in transparency. Micromorphological analysis and vibrational spectroscopy indicated hydrophobicity and compactness, as showed by the loss of free O- H bonds, sharpening of aliphatic C- H and stretching of C = C, C- O and C- O- C bonds with increasing filler content. Noticeable improvements in thermal stability and tensile strength were observed, while the flexibility was minimized. The films displayed remarkable barrier properties against hydrological stress, as evidenced by a reduction in water activity, moisture content, water uptake capacity, and solubility. The antioxidant activity against DPPH radicals suggested efficient release of bioactive compounds. Antibacterial assessment revealed inhibitory effect on Staphylococcus aureus and Bacillus cereus. During soil burial, notable weight loss along with shrinkage confirmed the film biodegradability. In conclusion, the pectin-ESMP-OPEO biocomposite films show potential characteristics as food packaging materials, warranting further performance testing on food samples.

Recently, there has been an increasing interest in biodegradable films for extending food's shelf life. This study developed pectin-potato starch-based films incorporating varying pyrogallol concentrations and evaluated shelf life their physical, antioxidant, mechanical, optical, antibacterial, structural, biodegradation, and shelf-life properties. Among the tested films (F1, pectin; F2, pectin + potato starch; F3, pectin + potato starch + 0.5%pyrogallol; and F4, pectin + potato starch + 1%pyrogallol), F4 exhibited superior antibacterial activity against Staphylococcus aureus (42 mm), Klebsiella pneumoniae (20.5 mm), and Escherichia coli (25.5 mm), antioxidant activity (AA) (95% (diphenylpicrylhydrazyl), 76% (metal chelating activity), and 87% (hydroxyl radical scavenging assay)), mechanical, and soil biodegradation. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and field emission scanning electron microscopy confirmed biocompatibility, whereas differential scanning calorimetry studies showed thermal stability. Shelf-life studies on tomatoes at 30 degrees C demonstrated that F4 film coating extended shelf life to 21 days by reducing weight loss (14.5%), total phenolic content (25 mg/100 g), AA (53.5%), firmness (46 N), and titratable acidity (0.38%) while maintaining the total soluble solids, pH, lycopene content, color, and microbial inhibition. This study introduces a novel active biodegradable film with enhanced antimicrobial, mechanical, and antioxidant properties for sustainable food packaging applications.

This study aims to develop an eco-friendly active packaging film to preserve perishable food. The film was prepared using natural polymers like sodium alginate and gelatin. Further, Clove oil was added to these films to improve their antioxidant and antimicrobial properties. The films' transmission was low, i.e., similar to 18.79% in 315-400 nm, lower, i.e., 14.41% in the UV region of 200-400 nm, and lowest, i.e., 12.21% in 200-280 nm with a band gap of similar to 3.52 eV, showing the effectiveness of films in shielding UV light. The films were hydrophilic and showed a low water vapor transmission rate. The packaging films showed thermal stability and reduced swelling. Freeze-thaw and high-temperature annealing significantly improved the film's mechanical properties (Y = 10.39 MPa and sigma = 23.37 MPa). The Chorioallantoic Membrane (CAM) assay in the chick model showed the films' biocompatibility. After 28 days, the films were completely biodegradable in soil, providing a sustainable solution for food packaging. Active packaging film showed significant antibacterial properties against Gram-positive S. aureus (colony-forming unit (CFU) reduced from 92 +/- 4.2 to 3 +/- 0.2, i.e., 96.74 +/- 5.13% inhibition) and Gram-negative E. coli (colony-forming unit reduced from 106 +/- 6 to 95 +/- 4.11, i.e., 96.13 +/- 3.41%). These films showed significant antioxidant activity and effectively delayed the decay of bananas (Musa acuminata), making them a promising solution for food packaging with excellent UV blocking, antimicrobial, and antioxidant properties. [GRAPHICS] .

Bio-active packaging films from cellulose acetate incorporated with cypress essential oil (Cyp) have been developed. Thus, cellulose acetate (CA), which is a biodegradable and renewable polymer has been used as an alternative to petroleum-based polymers. Cellulose acetate films were prepared via a solvent casting method incorporating 0, 10, 30, and 60% (w/w) of Cyp. The purpose was to evaluate the possible changes caused by the Cyp on the properties of the packaging films. Different methods and technics have been used to characterize these films. The antibacterial and antioxidant properties of the films were also analyzed. FTIR and XRD analysis indicated that Cyp was homogenously distributed in the films. Meanwhile, TGA analysis demonstrated that the addition of Cyp had an impact on thermal-oxidative properties of the films. The CA/Cyp films showed excellent biodegradability in soil after 60 days, with a percentage loss of 87.07% by mass, and improved mechanical properties with tensile strength and elongation-at-break of 8.1 +/- 0.2 MPa and 16.6 +/- 0.2%, respectively. Water absorption and water solubility values for CA/Cyp films ranged from 76.62 +/- 0.91% to 21.95 +/- 0.57% and from 1.29 +/- 0.35 to undetectable levels, respectively. The results displayed that antibacterial activity against Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus increased as the percentage of Cyp increased in the cellulose acetate films. Moreover, the free radical scavenging activity of cellulose acetate films was improved by increasing the Cyp concentration. These results indicate that cellulose acetate films containing a low-cost essential oil like Cyp have potential for use as active packaging for foods.

Chilled meat is prone to microbial contamination during storage, resulting in a shortened shelf life. This study developed multifunctional biodegradable aerogel with water absorption, antibacterial, and sustained release properties as a preservation pad for meat, using corn straw cellulose nanocrystals (CSCNCs) and acetylated starch (AS) as the structural skeleton and thymol (TMO) nanoemulsions as antimicrobials. The effects of different mass ratios of CSCNCs/AS on the morphology, structure, physical properties, and release behavior of aerogels were systematically analyzed. Additionally, their antibacterial properties, biocompatibility, and biodegradability were investigated. The results showed that the aerogels with CSCNC/AS mass ratio of 1:5 had a tailored structure for loading TMO nanoemulsions, as well as excellent water absorption, mechanical properties, and thermal stability. Due to strong hydrogen bonding and a porous structure, the TMO in the aerogels was continuously and uniformly released into high-water-activity and fatty food simulants, mainly controlled by Fickian diffusion. Furthermore, it exhibited superior antibacterial properties and biocompatibility. The application of aerogels for chilled beef preservation extended the shelf life from 8 days to approximately 12 days, which was superior to commercially available preservation pads. Notably, the aerogels exhibited superior biodegradability in soil. Therefore, the prepared aerogel preservation pads showed great potential in preserving chilled meat.

In this study, starch (ST), chitosan (CH), spider silk (SW), and their hybrid composite bioplastics were fabricated and examined for physicochemical and mechanical properties. The essential oils (EOs) of Rosmarinus officinalis were encapsulated to enhance their biological application. The prepared composite films were characterized using various spectroscopic techniques such as XRD, SEM, GCMS-, UV-VIS, TGA, and FTIR spectroscopy. The antimicrobial activity of the prepared film was tested against S. aureus bacterial and C. albican fungal strains which showed a greater zone of inhibition for the composite film encapsulated with EOs. The biodegradability of the synthesized film was evaluated for 60 days in soil under laboratory conditions. The composite film containing spider web and essential oil significantly improved mechanical properties. The physicochemical results, such as moisture, solubility, swelling, transmittance, opacity, and water vapor permeability, of the prepared bioplastic were comparable with those of the control plastic. The EO-based film had greater antioxidant activity against DPPH, hydrogen peroxide, and phosphomolybdenum assays, with an inhibition range of 60-70 %. The addition of spider web and essential oil to the chitosan/ starch film significantly increased the shelf life of injera and tomatoes for 7 and 10 days, respectively for the EO-based film. The biodegradability of the synthesized film has shown a great reduction in the weight and growth of microorganisms. In general, the CH/ST/SW and CH/ST/ SW/EOs composite films have greater mechanical, biological, physicochemical, and potential improvement of food shelf life applied as either coating or packaging material.

The aim of this work was to evaluate the influence of halloysite clay nanoparticles - unmodified (Hal) and organically modified (mHal) - and oregano essential oil (OEO), used as an antimicrobial agent in active packaging, on the biodegradation behavior of poly(hydroxybutyrate-co-hydroxyvalerate) (PHBV) films. Five samples were prepared by melt mixing using 3 wt% clay, and 8 wt% and 10.4 wt% OEO. PHBV compositions containing OEO presented the highest rate of biodegradation, achieving 46% of mass loss after aging for 12 weeks in simulated soil. The addition of clay nanoparticles reduced the polymer's biodegradation to 32%. The compositions containing OEO showed a rough and layered surface with visible cracks, indicating degradation occurring through layer-by-layer erosion from the surface. This degradation was confirmed by the chemical changes on the surface of all samples, with a slight decrease in molar masses. The composition containing 8 wt% OEO presented an increase in the crystallization degree as a result of the preferential consumption of amorphous phase, whereas for the compositions containing clay nanoparticles, both crystalline and amorphous regions were degraded at similar rates. Therefore, the combination of additives allows the biodegradation process of PHBV to be controlled for use in the production of active packaging.

This study targets explicitly finding an alternative to petroleum-based plastic films that burden the environment, which is a high priority. Hence, polymeric films were prepared with carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC) (4%), pectin (2%), and polyhydroxybutyrate (PHB) (0.5%) with different concentrations of thymol (0.3%, 0.9%, 1.8%, 3%, and 5%) and glycerol as a plasticizer by solution casting technique. The prepared films were tested for mechanical, optical, antimicrobial, and antioxidant properties. Film F5 (CMC + P + PHB + 0.9%thymol) showed an excellent tensile strength of 15 MPa, Young's modulus of 395 MPa, antioxidant activity (AA) (92%), rapid soil biodegradation (21 days), and strong antimicrobial activity against bacterial and fungal cultures such as Klebsiella pneumoniae, Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, Aspergillus niger, and Aspergillus flavus. The thymol content increase in films F6 (1.8%), F7 (3%), and F8 (5%) displayed a decrease in mechanical properties due to thymol's hydrophobicity. For shelf life studies on tomatoes, F2, a film without thymol (poor antimicrobial and antioxidant activities), F5 (film with superior mechanical, optical, antimicrobial, and antioxidant properties), and F7 (film with low mechanical properties) were selected. Film F5 coatings on tomato fruit enhanced the shelf life of up to 15 days by preventing weight loss, preserving firmness, and delaying changes in biochemical constituents like lycopene, phenols, and AA. Based on the mechanical, optical, antimicrobial, antioxidant, and shelf life results, the film F5 is suitable for active food packaging and preservation.

Consumers enjoy fruit because of its delicious flavor and nutritional value. However, fruit is also prone to oxidation and microbial infection after picking. Therefore, it is imperative to produce safe antiseptic packing materials. Starch films have received considerable attention as an alternative to conventional plastics. The addition of other antibacterial active materials to starch film can significantly improve performance, including water resistance, anti-oxidation, and antibacterial properties. Selenium nanoparticles (SeNPs) have exceptional anti-oxidation and antibacterial characteristics and are therefore considered effective antibacterial agents. In this study, we utilized polyphenol and polysaccharide interactions to improve the structure-biological activity of SeNPs to introduce anti-oxidation, antibacterial properties, and UV-blocking performance to extend the shelf life of food and achieve self-reinforcement, thus improving the mechanical properties of the material and making it suitable for food packaging. Notably, the process for the preparation of the SeNPs-embedded starch film was environmentally friendly (water as the solvent) and simple, with mild reaction conditions. The results from this study demonstrated the ability of starch film to reduce dehydration, prevent nutrient loss, inhibit microbe growth, preserve litchi quality, and extend the shelf life during storage. In addition, the film demonstrated biodegradability (11 days in soil), good biocompatibility, and biosafety, offering significant potential for the development of safe and sustainable food packaging systems. This phytochemical nano-enhancement starch film offers a promising solution for multipurpose active food packaging.