Effect of mechanical strength on chitosan-pva blend through ionic crosslinking for food packaging application

Abstract

The present research aimed to enhance the mechanical strength and%Elongation of Chitosan(CS)-Polyvinyl Alcohol(PVA) blend through crosslinking with Potassium nitrate(KNO3).The blending and crystallinity of CS-PVA blend along with potassium nitrate as crosslinking agent was confirmed by Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) and X-Ray Diffractometer (XRD).The morphology of the film surface were investigated by Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM). The mechanical behaviour of the crosslinked and uncrosslinked CS-PVA films was examined by ASTMD.The Tensile Strength (TS) of the CS-PVA blend was enhanced from 8Mpa to 31.9Mpa and% Elongation from 17.16% to 67% after crosslinking with KNO3.Thus the results indicate that the crosslinked CS-PVA blend films have good mechanical strength than CS-PVA blend alone and hence promises to be a good material for the biomedical and active food packaging applications. © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.