Preparation and antimicrobial properties of polymer blend based on LLDPE and polyhexamethylene guanidine

Abstract

Antibacterial packaging represents an active packaging solution crafted to uphold the quality and safety of products. One of the popular polymer used in food packaging is Linear Low‐Density Polyethylene (LLDPE), due to its low cost, ease of processing, and high mechanical properties. Polymer blend based on LLDPE and antibacterial agent PHMG were prepared in the presence of PE‐g_AM compatibilizer and DCP initiator. The inclusion of PHMG resulted in a decline in the material's tensile strength. Specifically, in the sample containing 2% PHMG content, the tensile strength decreased by 11.6% in comparison to the original PE; whereas the elongation at break of the samples slightly increased. IR analysis confirmed the presence of characteristic groups of PHMG after the reaction. The polymer blend material acquired demonstrated antibacterial effects against both Gram‐negative (E. coli) and Gram‐positive (S. aureus) bacteria owing to the existence of PHMG within the material. The polymer blend sample LLDPE/2%PHMG/0.2%DCP/5%PE‐g_AM demonstrated the best antibacterial effect. The diameter of the S. aureus resistant zone reached 1.9 cm, 2.4 times bigger than the those of E. coli. The obtained properties of mechanical properties and antibacterial ability, polymer blend based on LLDPE/PHMG is suitable for application of antibacterial packaging film.