Application of Nanotechnology to Improve the Performance of Biodegradable Biopolymer-Based Packaging Materials

Abstract

There is great interest in developing biodegradable biopolymer-based packaging materials whose functional performance is enhanced by incorporating active compounds into them, such as light blockers, plasticizers, crosslinkers, diffusion blockers, antimicrobials, antioxidants, and sensors. However, many of these compounds are volatile, chemically unstable, water-insoluble, matrix incompatible, or have adverse effects on film properties, which makes them difficult to directly incorporate into the packaging materials. These challenges can often be overcome by encapsulating the active compounds within food-grade nanoparticles, which are then introduced into the packaging materials. The presence of these nanoencapsulated active compounds in biopolymer-based coatings or films can greatly improve their functional performance. For example, anthocyanins can be used as light-blockers to retard oxidation reactions, or they can be used as pH/gas/temperature sensors to produce smart indicators to monitor the freshness of packaged foods. Encapsulated botanical extracts (like essential oils) can be used to increase the shelf life of foods due to their antimicrobial and antioxidant activities. The resistance of packaging materials to external factors can be improved by incorporating plasticizers (glycerol, sorbitol), crosslinkers (glutaraldehyde, tannic acid), and fillers (nanoparticles or nanofibers). Nanoenabled delivery systems can also be designed to control the release of active ingredients (such as antimicrobials or antioxidants) into the packaged food over time, which may extend their efficacy. This article reviews the different kinds of nanocarriers available for loading active compounds into these types of packaging materials and then discusses their impact on the optical, mechanical, thermal, barrier, antioxidant, and antimicrobial properties of the packaging materials. Furthermore, it highlights the different kinds of bioactive compounds that can be incorporated into biopolymer-based packaging.

Fabrication and application of functional active packaging material based on carbohydrate biopolymers formulated withLemon verbena/Ferulago angulataextracts for the preservation of raw chicken meat

“…The incorporation of ZG into CMC film strengthens the peaks at 2933 and 2735 cm −1 wavelength because of the existence of several carboxylic anions in the CMC film. CMC/ZG film incorporated with FAE or LVE shows peaks of about 1000–1700 cm −1 , that related to the stretching vibrations of C=O, –C=C–C=O, –C=C–, and –C–C– in the phenolic ingredients of FAE or LVE (Khezerlou et al, 2021; Rezaei & Shahbazi, 2018). In addition, CMC/ZG composite films which incorporated with FAE or LVE exhibit considerable peaks at 3500–4000 cm −1 owing to the carboxylic anions in the structure of the films were enhanced.…”

Smart packaging for food spoilage assessment based on Hibiscus sabdariffa L. anthocyanin-loaded chitosan films

“…Measurements of the WVP of packaging materials provide insights into their ability to resist the movement of water from inside to outside the packaging or vice versa, which has an important impact on food quality and shelf life (Khezerlou et al, 2021b;Tavassoli et al, 2023). The WVP of the pure chitosan label (3.2 × 10 − 11 g. m/m 2 .…”

“…Natural pigments isolated from botanical sources are being utilized for this purpose because they are sustainable, safe, and label friendly, as well as exhibiting additional functional attributes, such as antioxidant and antimicrobial activity. Plants contain a variety of pigments with the potential of being utilized as pH-sensitive sensors, especially anthocyanins (Khezerlou et al, 2021a;Qi et al, 2022).…”

Application of Red Cabbage Anthocyanins as pH-Sensitive Pigments in Smart Food Packaging and Sensors

“…Active packaging systems are fabricated by loading functional bioactive components such as natural plant extracts, essential oils, antimicrobials, etc. to achieve a prolonged shelf life in food products [9][10][11]. The real-time monitoring of the food quality and storage situations from food plants to the end-user is also defined as intelligent food packaging [10,12].…”