Fabrication of jackfruit seed starch/tamarind kernel xyloglucan/zinc oxide nanoparticles-based biodegradable films for food packaging applications

Abstract

Globally, the accumulation of plastic packaging materials in the environment and insufficient waste processing streams are the major challenges of food industries. Valorizing these byproducts to develop biodegradable food packaging materials could be a sustainable solution. The current study explores the extent of film-forming abilities of jackfruit seed starch (JSS) and tamarind kernel xyloglucan (TXG) composites with varying concentrations of zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZNPs). The water solubility and contact angle measurements showed that incorporated ZNPs reduced the hydrophilicity of the films due to the increased interfacial adhesion between biopolymers and nanofillers. The FTIR interferogram confirms the formation of strong intermolecular interactions via increasing intensity at O—H stretching vibrations. Moreover, the mechanical attributes demonstrated that incorporating ZNPs led to effective stress transfer at the interface and improved the film’s tensile strength and firmness. The stress relaxation profile showed that the addition of ZNPs altered the viscoelastic nature of the films by increasing elasticity and providing resistance to polymer chain breakage under stress conditions. In addition, the DSC thermogram showed that the addition of ZNPs decreased the polymer chain mobility and enhanced the thermal stability of nanocomposites. Overall, the results indicated that the prepared nanocomposites are promising materials for food packaging.