Abstract
Plant cuticles have attracted attention because they can be used to produce hydrophobic films as models for novel biopolymers. Usually, cuticles are obtained from agroresidual waste. To find new renewable natural sources to design green and commercially available bioplastics, fruits of S. aculeatissimum and S. myriacanthum were analyzed. These fruits are not used for human or animal consumption, mainly because the fruit is composed of seeds. Fruit peels were object of enzymatic and chemical methods to get thick cutins in good yields (approximately 77% from dry weight), and they were studied by solid-state resonance techniques (CPMAS 13C NMR), attenuated total reflection-Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (ATR-FTIR), atomic force microscopy (AFM) and direct injection electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (DIESI-MS) analytical methods. The main component of S. aculeatissimum cutin is 10,16-dihydroxypalmitic acid (10,16-DHPA, 69.84%), while S. myriacanthum cutin besides of 10,16-DHPA (44.02%); another two C18 monomers: 9,10,18-trihydroxy-octadecanoic acid (24.03%) and 18-hydroxy-9S,10R-epoxy-octadecanoic acid (9.36%) are present. The hydrolyzed cutins were used to produce films demonstrating that both cutins could be a potential raw material for different biopolymers.
Highlights
The cuticle is the outer membrane that covers the aerial parts of plants, such as the stem, leaves, flowers, and fruit
We have searched for fruits that are not for human consumption, which present the same chemical characteristics of the cuticles used for biopolymers applications in order to be considered promising candidates as a raw material to produce bioplastics
The resulting cutins were analyzed by Cross Polarization Magic-Angle Spinning (CPMAS 13 C NMR), attenuated total reflection-Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (ATR-FTIR) and atomic force microscopy (AFM)
Summary
The cuticle is the outer membrane that covers the aerial parts of plants, such as the stem, leaves, flowers, and fruit. Raw renewable materials have a high impact on the cost of bio-based plastic production and, in this regard, different efforts have been directed to use biomass to get or produce biopolymers Biopolymers such as starch, cellulose, lignocellulosic materials, and proteins; bio-derived monomers like polylactic acid (PLA), polyglycolic acid (PGA), and biodegradable polymers from petrochemicals (aliphatic polyesters, aromatic co-polyesters and polyvinyl alcohols) have been investigated as sources for bioplastics [15,16]. We have searched for fruits that are not for human consumption, which present the same chemical characteristics of the cuticles used for biopolymers applications in order to be considered promising candidates as a raw material to produce bioplastics. Films were obtained and characterized and, from these results, both Solanum species could be considered as a raw material for biopolymers used in different fields of the plastic industry
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