PREPARATION OF STARCH?SODIUM FUMARATE PLASTIC FILM WITH THE ADDITION OF POLIVINYL ALCOHOL, XANTHAN GUM AND CINNAMON ESSENTIAL OIL

• Main Author: Fransiska Perada Lajar, Maria
• Format: Final Project
• Language: Indonesia
• Subjects: Kimia
• Online Access: https://digilib.itb.ac.id/gdl/view/87276
• Institution: Institut Teknologi Bandung

Packaging plastic is one the most commonly used types of plastic in Indonesia. However, these plastics that typically made from polyethylene, are challenging to degrade and lack antibacterial properties, which can lead to a reduced shelf life for food. A possible solution to this issue is the creation of more eco-friendly bioplastics, which can also incorporate antibacterial agents to help prolong product shelf life. In this study, packaging plastic was created from a starch-sodium fumarate inclusion complex combined with PVA, xanthan gum, and cinnamon essential oil as an antibacterial agent. The plastic film was produced by complexing starch with sodium fumarate in water at 85-90°C for 2 hours, with sodium fumarate concentrations of 3% and 5% (w/v based on the mass of the complex). This complex was then mixed with PVA in mass ratios of 2:1 and 3:1 (PSF:PVA). Subsequently, xanthan gum was incorporated at 3%, 5%, and 7% (w/w based on the total film mass), and cinnamon essential oil was added at 1%, 3%, and 5% (w/w based on the total film mass). Finally, the plasticizer sorbitol was introduced in concentrations of 20%, 25%, and 30% (w/w based on the total film mass). The films were characterized through tests of tensile strength, elongation, topography and surface roughness, swelling, and contact angle. The mechanical testing revealed that: (1) the film containing 5% sodium fumarate, a 3:1 complex ratio with PVA, 3% xanthan gum, 1% cinnamon essential oil, and 20% sorbitol had a maximum tensile strength of 15.15 MPa, (2) the film with 3% sodium fumarate, a 3:1 complex ratio with PVA, 3% xanthan gum, 1% cinnamon essential oil, and 20% sorbitol showed a maximum elongation of 97%, (3) the addition of sodium fumarate improved tensile strength by forming more inclusion complexes, which increased the crystallinity of the starch, (4) sorbitol enhanced elongation by reducing interactions between the main polymer molecules. The results of the topography and surface roughness tests indicate that surface roughness decreases as the concentration of sodium fumarate and xanthan gum decreases. The swelling and contact angle tests indicated that the films were hydrophilic, with swelling percentages ranging from 9.4-20.8% and contact angles between 64.5-74.6°.