Department of Chemical Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology Guwahati, Guwahati 781039, Assam, India.
Department of Biosciences and Bioengineering, Indian Institute of Technology Guwahati, Guwahati 781039, Assam, India.
Int J Biol Macromol. 2022 Nov 30;221:163-182. doi: 10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2022.08.203. Epub 2022 Sep 5.
Cellulose, starch, chitosan, polylactic acid, and polyhydroxyalkanoates are seen as promising alternatives to conventional plastics in food packaging. However, the application of these biopolymers in the food packaging industry on a commercial scale is limited due to their poor performance and processing characteristics and high production cost. This review aims to provide an insight into the recent advances in research that address these limitations. Loading of nanofillers into polymer matrix could improve thermal, mechanical, and barrier properties of biopolymers. Blending of biopolymers also offers the possibility of acquiring newer materials with desired characteristics. However, nanofillers tend to agglomerate when loaded above an optimum level in the polymer matrix. This article throws light on different methods adopted by researchers to achieve uniform dispersion of nanofillers in bionanocomposites. Furthermore, different processing methods available for converting biopolymers into different packaging forms are discussed. In addition, the potential utilization of agricultural, brewery, and industrial wastes as feedstock for the production of biopolymers, and integrated biorefinery concept that not only keep the total production cost of biopolymers low but are also environment-friendly, are discussed. Finally, future research prospects in this field and the possible contribution of biopolymers to sustainable development are presented. This review will certainly be helpful to researchers working on sustainable food packaging, and companies exploring pilot projects to scale up biopolymer production for industrial applications.
纤维素、淀粉、壳聚糖、聚乳酸和聚羟基烷酸酯被视为传统塑料在食品包装中的有前途的替代品。然而，由于这些生物聚合物的性能和加工特性差以及生产成本高，它们在食品包装行业中的商业规模应用受到限制。本综述旨在深入了解解决这些限制的最新研究进展。纳米填料的负载可以提高生物聚合物的热、机械和阻隔性能。生物聚合物的共混也为获得具有所需特性的新材料提供了可能性。然而，当纳米填料在聚合物基质中超过最佳水平时，它们往往会团聚。本文介绍了研究人员为实现纳米复合材料中纳米填料的均匀分散而采用的不同方法。此外，还讨论了将生物聚合物转化为不同包装形式的不同加工方法。此外，还讨论了将农业、啤酒厂和工业废物用作生物聚合物生产原料的潜力，以及不仅可以降低生物聚合物的总生产成本，而且还具有环保效益的综合生物精炼概念。最后，提出了该领域的未来研究前景以及生物聚合物对可持续发展的可能贡献。本综述对于从事可持续食品包装研究的研究人员以及正在探索试点项目以扩大生物聚合物工业应用规模的公司肯定会有所帮助。
