Abstract:
The demand for biodegradable and environmentally friendly food packaging stems from growing
environmental concerns about traditional plastics, which contribute to pollution and take
centuries to decompose. Bioplastics provide a sustainable alternative that reduces reliance on
fossil fuels while minimising environmental effect. In this study, pectin was utilised as a matrix,
chitosan as a co-biopolymer, and glutamic acid and glycerol as natural plasticisers to create
bioplastics by hydrogen bonding and electrostatic interactions, which were accompanied by
weak vander Waal's forces. The FTIR study showed the presence of hydrogen bonding and
electrostatic interactions, whilst the XRD pattern revealed the bioplastics' semi-crystalline
structure. Their swelling ratio was between (30-335 ± 20%) and mass loss (53-75 ± 5%), making
them sensitive to hydrolysis after a 24-hour incubation in water. The reported tensile modulus
ranged from 0.1 to 3.30 N/mm2, with A3+3% NPs having the highest (3.30 N/mm2), which can
be attributed to the greater plasticization effect in the A1+3% NPs. After 7 days of dipping in
soil, the samples containing ZnO nanoparticles showed a degradation of up to 9.92% and were
eco-friendly according to eco-toxicity assays, making them suitable for use in food packaging
applications. As a result, these pure biobased polymers could serve as beneficial materials for
future food packaging application.
