Please join us for today’s seminar presented by Tayana Roark entitled “Producing protein films with biobased plasticizers as a sustainable plastic packaging alternative”
Time: 12:05-12:55
Location: Room 205, Babcock Hall
ABSTRACT
As an alternative to traditional plastic food packaging, interest has increased in biopolymers because they are more sustainable than conventional plastics. For example, plant-based proteins can be sourced from various waste streams and have the innate ability to form films projected to be edible and home-compostable. Plasticizer and solvent choice are important when casting films to reduce brittleness and improve film tenacity through cross-linking. Glycerol, the most used bio-plasticizer, is prone to migration out of the films, thus reducing the films’ flexibility and shelf life. Our study aims to couple the plasticizing effects of phenolic compounds with the protein solubilizing properties of formic acid to enhance protein film integrity. Films were solution-cast by dissolving plant proteins (gluten, soy, or zein) in combination with polyphenol extracts (green tea extract and grape seed extracts – high and low polymerized) at different concentrations in formic acid. To evaluate stability, films were stored at 50% relative humidity for 24 h at room temperature before tensile testing. Wheat films showed that treatment with polyphenol extracts improved film integrity by increasing tensile strength while maintaining moderate flexibility. However, they did not have an impact on aqueous stability and increased water vapor permeability. More research needs to be done to understand the specific mechanisms behind these results. This study demonstrates and assesses the ability of proteins to be utilized as a sustainable alternative for traditional plastic food packaging
