Biopolymers for food packaging applications

IGLESIAS MONTES, MAGDALENA L.; MANFREDI, LILIANA B.; CYRAS, VIVIANA P.

Simposio; Biomaterials symposium at the online VIII Simposio Anual de Estudiantes Relacionados a la Ciencia e Ingeniería de Materiales (SIMPEST 2020); 2020

Student Chapter IIM-SMM-MRS

The development of bio-based polymers and innovative process technologies can reduce thedependence on the indiscriminate use of fossil fuel polymers in the packaging industry, and moveto a sustainable materials basis. In this sense, novel biodegradable blends of poly(lactic acid)(PLA) and poly(3-hydroxybutyrate) (PHB), plasticized with tributyrin (TB), are here developedand proposed as an eco-friendly alternative. Polymeric films with PLA/PHB ratio of 70/30 and15 wt.% of compatibilizer (TB) were obtained by melt mixing (185ºC and 50 rpm) andcompression molding (190ºC and 5 MPa). This work focuses on the enhancement of packagingperformance of the green materials based on their UV-protection, barrier and mechanicalproperties as well as their biodegradability. The incorporation of TB in the polymeric matrixenhanced the ductility of materials; UV spectrophotometry revealed that PLA/PHB/TB blendexhibits high transparency and UV-A, UV-B and UV-C protection capacity; and water barrierproperties measurements proved that the bio-based material performance is comparable to thoseof some commodities like low-density polyethylene (LDPE). All the obtained materials fullydisintegrated within 35 days buried in composting soil, corroborating their condition ascompostable plastic materials according to the ISO20200 standard. Finally, results highlight thepotential of these new blends broadening the current application field of PLA and PHB.