Optical, thermal, mechanical, and antibacterial properties of polyvinyl alcohol/sodium alginate/ZnMn 2 O 4 nanocomposites films for various optical devices and food packaging applications

This work involves preparing zinc manganite nanoparticles (ZnMn 2 O 4 NPs) using the Sol -gel method. Polymer nanocomposites of polyvinyl alcohol (PVA)/Sodium alginate (NaAlg)- ZnMn 2 O 4 NPs were created using the solution casting technique. The polymer nanocomposites films were made with varying weight percentages of ZnMn 2 O 4 nanoparticles. With the addition of nanofiller, the reduced direct and indirect energy band gap values and increased Urbach energy values were discovered in the UV -Vis data. XRD data showed a reduction in crystallinity degree with dopant. ZnMn 2 O 4 NPs had a strong interaction with PVA/NaAlg blend, as confirmed by FTIR. The addition of ZnMn 2 O 4 NPs led to improved thermal stability of the polymer nanocomposites films. Additionally, the nanocomposites films' mechanical characteristics were examined. The loading of ZnMn 2 O 4 nanoparticles has been associated with an increasing trend in the mechanical properties of the nanocomposites, including its toughness, Young's modulus, Tensile strength (Ts), and elongation. The antibacterial activity of the nanocomposites against fungus and bacteria was studied. Additionally, PVA/NaAlg-ZnMn 2 O 4 nanocomposites films had good antibacterial characteristics against environmental microorganisms such as Gram-positive (G + ) S. aureus and Gram-negative(G - ) E. coli bacteria as well as fungi C. albicans and A. niger . It was observed that the biodegradability of the nanocomposite films was lower compared to the pure PVA/NaAlg film. Compared to pure film, the water solubility was decreased upon the addition of ZnMn 2 O 4 NPs. After ZnMn 2 O 4 was added to the pure blend, the WVTR decreased. The produced polymer nanocomposites films appear to be a promising material for food packing, according to these results.