Premium
Improved water resistance in edible zein films and composites for biodegradable food packaging
Author(s) -
YAMADA KOHJI,
TAKAHASHI HIDEKAZU,
NOGUCHI AKINORI
Publication year - 1995
Publication title -
international journal of food science and technology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.831
H-Index - 96
eISSN - 1365-2621
pISSN - 0950-5423
DOI - 10.1111/j.1365-2621.1995.tb01408.x
Subject(s) - acetone , materials science , food packaging , epoxy , chemical engineering , water resistance , permeation , composite material , chemistry , polymer chemistry , organic chemistry , membrane , food science , biochemistry , engineering
Summary Zein, corn prolamine, was dissolved in several organic solvents to make films and their properties were examined. Ethanol with 20% water and acetone with 30% water were found to dissolve zein well and transform it into a transparent flexible film after moderate drying. Both films showed similar breaking strength to that of commercial thin film of polyvinylidene chloride for food use and were digested with proteases. Only the film prepared from acetone solution showed a relatively low water permeability. This water permeation was found to depend strongly on the rate of diffusion. 1,2‐Epoxy‐3‐chloropropane (ECP) was added into the acetone solution to cross‐link the zein molecules for the purpose of improving the breaking strength and water‐resistant properties of the film. Alpha‐chymotrypsin was found to digest the film even after the modification with ECP. However, this cross‐linking resulted in little improvement in the water‐resistant properties of the film and also reduced its flexibility.