Biodegradable Polyvinyl Alcohol/Carboxymethyl Cellulose Composite Incorporated with l-Alanine Functionalized MgO Nanoplates: Physico-chemical and Food Packaging Features

In the present work, MgO NPs have been prepared by novel biogenic method using agro-waste WELFSA and their surface was modified using l-alanine under microwave irradiation. Then the effect of l-alanine functionalized MgO NPs (1, 3 and 5 wt%) on the polyvinyl alcohol/carboxymethyl cellulose (PVA/CMC) matrices blended to investigate physico-mechanical properties of the as-prepared nanocomposite films using various techniques. The SEM image showed homogenous distribution of plate-like nanostructure of MgO-l-alanine in the doped polymeric film matrices. The molecular interactions between the nanocomposite film components were confirmed by the FT-IR spectra. The tensile strength of PVA/CMC nanocomposites (NCs) was improved from 15.52 +/- 0.27 to 50.32 +/- 0.61 MPa, when filled with 5 wt% of MgO-l-alanine. Moreover, the UV rays blocking, hydrophobicity, water vapor transmission, moisture retention capacity and thermal stability of the PVA/CMC blend was greatly enhanced by the incorporation of MgO-l-alanine NPs. Furthermore, overall migration limit of PVA/CMC NCs films against their food simulants were found below the permitted limit of 10 mg/dm(2). In addition, PVA/CMC NCs films had shown high antimicrobial against Escherichia coli and Candida albicans microbes and also showed excellent antioxidant activity against DPPH free radicals assay. Further, the prepared films undergo more than 30% soil degradation rate, when buried in untreated soil. Overall, these results suggest that the prepared PVA/CMC NCs films could be employed as a promising candidate for food packaging applications.