Bangar Sneh Punia, Chaudhary Vandana, Khubber Sucheta, Whiteside William Scott
Department of Packaging and Graphic Media Science, Rochester Institute of Technology, New York 14623, USA; Department of Food, Nutrition and Packaging Sciences, Clemson University, Clemson 29634, USA.
Department of Dairy Technology, College of Dairy Science and Technology, Lala Lajpat Rai University of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, Hisar, Haryana 125001, India.
Int J Biol Macromol. 2025 Aug;320(Pt 3):145889. doi: 10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2025.145889. Epub 2025 Jul 10.
With the increased emphasis on sustainable food packaging solutions, naturally derived nano-fillers have emerged as highly promising reinforcements in polymer composites. Among these, Kaolinite, a phyllosilicate clay mineral with a distinctive 1:1 layered structure, is composed of alternating silica tetrahedral and alumina octahedral sheets linked by hydrogen bonding. This arrangement endows kaolinite with a high surface area and strong interlayer interactions, which enhance its compatibility with various polymer matrices, including polylactic acid (PLA), starch, etc. These properties have made kaolinite an attractive filler in biodegradable polymer composites, supporting the development of food packaging materials with reduced environmental impacts. Incorporation of kaolinite at optimal loadings (commonly 3-10 wt%) into polymer composites has been shown to enhance tensile strength, improve Young's modulus, and reduce water vapor permeability, thus substantially improving mechanical integrity and barrier performance essential for food packaging applications. This review comprehensively summarizes recent advances in the utilization of kaolinite as a natural nanofiller in polymer-based food packaging materials, emphasizing its influence on mechanical properties, flexibility, barrier functions, and environmental impact. Furthermore, this review carefully examines the safety of kaolinite for use in food packaging, including how it meets health regulations and legal requirements. It also discusses the practical challenges and opportunities involved in scaling up its use for commercial production.
随着对可持续食品包装解决方案的重视程度不断提高，天然衍生的纳米填料已成为聚合物复合材料中极具前景的增强材料。其中，高岭土是一种具有独特1:1层状结构的层状硅酸盐粘土矿物，由通过氢键连接的交替的二氧化硅四面体和氧化铝八面体片层组成。这种结构赋予高岭土高比表面积和强层间相互作用，增强了它与包括聚乳酸（PLA）、淀粉等各种聚合物基体的相容性。这些特性使高岭土成为可生物降解聚合物复合材料中一种有吸引力的填料，有助于开发对环境影响较小的食品包装材料。已表明，在聚合物复合材料中以最佳负载量（通常为3-10 wt%）加入高岭土可提高拉伸强度、改善杨氏模量并降低水蒸气透过率，从而显著提高食品包装应用所需的机械完整性和阻隔性能。本综述全面总结了高岭土作为天然纳米填料在聚合物基食品包装材料中的应用的最新进展，强调了其对机械性能、柔韧性、阻隔功能和环境影响的作用。此外，本综述仔细研究了高岭土用于食品包装的安全性，包括其如何符合健康法规和法律要求。还讨论了扩大其用于商业生产所涉及的实际挑战和机遇。
