Cutin‐Inspired Polymers and Plant Cuticle‐like Composites as Sustainable Food Packaging Materials

Guzmán-Puyol, Susana; Heredia, Antonio; Heredia‐Guerrero, José A.; Benı́tez, José J.

doi:10.1002/9783527820078.ch6

Cited by 3 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 111 publications

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“…As regards mechanical properties, cutin polymers show higher elongation at break compared to other commercial plastics and bioplastics, despite being less rigid [ 22 ]. Indeed, tomato cutin exhibits a mechanical behavior similar to that of some elastomers, with an elongation at break of 27% and Young’s modulus of 45 MPa at 23 °C and 40% relative humidity, making it more ductile and less rigid than other polymers such as PLA, P3HB, and cellulose [ 23 ]. Furthermore, cutin’s non-toxicity and water resistance make it a particularly suitable material for metal packaging containers like cans, where food contact approval, chemical inertness, and mechanical robustness are essential requirements that must be ensured [ 24 , 25 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Crosslinked Polyesters as Fully Biobased Coatings with Cutin Monomer from Tomato Peel Wastes

Ruffini,

Bianchi Oltolini,

Magni

et al. 2024

Polymers

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Cutin, one of the main structural components of tomato peels, is a waxy biopolymer rich in hydroxylated fatty acids. In this study, 10,16-dihydroxyhexadecanoic acid (10,16-diHHDA) was extracted and isolated from tomato peels and exploited to develop fully crosslinked polyesters as potential candidates for replacing fossil-based metal protective coatings. A preliminary screening was conducted to select the base formulation, and then a design of experiments (DoE) was used as a methodology to identify the optimal composition to develop a suitable coating material. Different formulations containing 10,16-diHHDA and other biorefinery monomers, including 2,5-furandicarboxylic acid, were considered. To this end, all polyesters were characterized through differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and gel content measurements to determine their Tg value and crosslinking efficiency. Compositions exhibiting the best trade-off between Tg value, chemical resistance, and sufficiently high 10,16-diHHDA content between 39 and 48 wt.% were used to prepare model coatings that were characterized for assessing their wettability, scratch hardness, chemical resistance, and adhesion to metal substrates. These polyester coatings showed a Tg in the range of 45–55 °C, a hydrophobic behavior with a water contact angle of around 100°, a good solvent resistance (>100 MEK double rubs), and an adhesion strength to steel higher than 2 MPa. The results obtained confirmed the potential of cutin-based resins as coatings for metal protection, meeting the requirements for ensuring physicochemical properties of the final product, as well as for optimizing the valorization of such an abundant agri-food waste as tomato peels.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Crosslinked Polyesters as Fully Biobased Coatings with Cutin Monomer from Tomato Peel Wastes

Ruffini,

Bianchi Oltolini,

Magni

et al. 2024

Polymers

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“…It features an amorphous branching structure, forming a flexible three-dimensional polymer network of C 16 to C 18 fatty acids linked by ester bonds [2]. This network interacts with polysaccharides (primarily cellulose and pectin), waxes, phenolic compounds, and aromatic components [2,3]. Functionally, cutin serves as a structural component, defending against pathogens [4] and preventing water loss alongside waxes [5].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…It typically makes up 2-5% of the total weight of processed tomatoes [9,11], with about 33% seeds, 27% skin, and 40% pulp [12][13][14]. Globally, it amounts to around 1.2 million tons annually, with Europe alone generating approximately 0.3 million tons [3]. Disposal of these residues poses challenges, with current low-value uses including animal feed, fertilizer substrate, and biogas production [9,11].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…However, tomato pomace, especially the peels, also serves as a major reservoir of cutin [2,14], as well as fiber [15,16], and carbohydrates such as cellulose and pectin [16,17]. Remarkably, tomato pomace contains about 20% cutin by weight, with an estimated annual cutin volume ranging from 10 5 to 10 6 tons [3]. This underscores the significant potential for extracting cutin from tomato peels, which could significantly impact the development of sustainable industrial practices.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Enhancing Cutin Extraction Efficiency from Industrially Derived Tomato Processing Residues by High-Pressure Homogenization

Eslami,

Donsì,

Ferrari

et al. 2024

Foods

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This study primarily aimed to enhance the extraction of cutin from industrial tomato peel residues. Initially, the conventional extraction process was optimized using response surface methodology (RSM). Subsequently, high-pressure homogenization (HPH) was introduced to improve extraction efficiency and sustainability. The optimization process focused on determining the optimal conditions for conventional extraction via chemical hydrolysis, including temperature (100–130 °C), time (15–120 min), and NaOH concentration (1–3%). The optimized conditions, determined as 130 °C, 120 min, and 3% NaOH solution, yielded a maximum cutin extraction of 32.5%. Furthermore, the results indicated that applying HPH pre-treatment to tomato peels before alkaline hydrolysis significantly increased the cutin extraction yield, reaching 46.1%. This represents an approximately 42% increase compared to the conventional process. Importantly, HPH pre-treatment enabled cutin extraction under milder conditions using a 2% NaOH solution, reducing NaOH usage by 33%, while still achieving a substantial cutin yield of 45.6%. FT-IR analysis confirmed that cutin obtained via both conventional and HPH-assisted extraction exhibited similar chemical structures, indicating that the main chemical groups and structure of cutin remained unaltered by HPH treatment. Furthermore, cutin extracts from both conventional and HPH-assisted extraction demonstrated thermal stability up to approximately 200 °C, with less than 5% weight loss according to TGA analysis. These findings underscore the potential of HPH technology to significantly enhance cutin extraction yield from tomato peel residues while utilizing milder chemical hydrolysis conditions, thereby promoting a more sustainable and efficient cutin extraction process.

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“…The presence of monomers with epoxy and oxo mid-chain groups is also reported [ 14 , 16 , 17 , 18 ]. The C16 dihydroxy fatty acids typically have the second hydroxyl group at C-10, C-9, C-8, and/or C-7, and the C18 dihydroxy fatty acids at C-9 and C-10 [ 19 ]. Cross-linking via these hydroxyl groups allows the formation of a rigid three-dimensional matrix characteristic of cutin [ 17 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Recovery and Purification of Cutin from Tomato By-Products for Application in Hydrophobic Films

et al. 2023

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Tomato pomace is a low-cost, renewable resource that has been studied for the extraction of the biopolyester cutin, which is mainly composed of long-chain hydroxy fatty acids. These are excellent building blocks to produce new hydrophobic biopolymers. In this work, the monomers of cutin were extracted and isolated from tomato pomace and utilized to produce cutin-based films. Several strategies for the depolymerization and isolation of monomeric cutin were explored. Strategies differed in the state of the raw material at the beginning of the extraction process, the existence of a tomato peel dewaxing step, the type of solvent used, the type of alkaline hydrolysis, and the isolation method of cutin monomers. These strategies enabled the production of extracts enriched in fatty acids (16-hydroxyhexadecanoic, hexadecanedioic, stearic, and linoleic, among others). Cutin and chitosan-based films were successfully cast from cutin extracts and commercial chitosan. Films were characterized regarding their thickness (0.103 ± 0.004 mm and 0.106 ± 0.005 mm), color, surface morphology, water contact angle (93.37 ± 0.31° and 95.15 ± 0.53°), and water vapor permeability ((3.84 ± 0.39) × 10−11 mol·m/m2·s·Pa and (4.91 ± 1.33) × 10−11 mol·m/m2·s·Pa). Cutin and chitosan-based films showed great potential to be used in food packaging and provide an application for tomato processing waste.

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Cutin‐Inspired Polymers and Plant Cuticle‐like Composites as Sustainable Food Packaging Materials

Cited by 3 publications

References 111 publications

Crosslinked Polyesters as Fully Biobased Coatings with Cutin Monomer from Tomato Peel Wastes

Crosslinked Polyesters as Fully Biobased Coatings with Cutin Monomer from Tomato Peel Wastes

Enhancing Cutin Extraction Efficiency from Industrially Derived Tomato Processing Residues by High-Pressure Homogenization

Recovery and Purification of Cutin from Tomato By-Products for Application in Hydrophobic Films

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