Electrospun fiber mats based on chitosan-carrageenan containing Malva sylvestris anthocyanins: Physic-mechanical, thermal, and barrier properties along with application as intelligent food packaging materials

Abstract

This study aimed to encapsulate Malva sylvestris extract (MSE) into chitosan-carrageenan (CH-KC) fibers using the electrospinning technique and monitor the freshness of silver carp fillets during the refrigerated storage conditions for 8 days. The CH-KC + MSE 4 % fiber mats were red at pH values lower than 3, purple at pH 4–6, dark blue at pH 7, green at pH 8–10, and brown at pH 11–12. The tensile strength, elongation at break, water vapor permeability, oxygen transmission rate, moisture content, and water solubility of fabricated fiber mats were 7.71–11.02 MPa, 13.12 %–30.00 %, 7.35–20.01 × 10−4 g mm/m2 h Pa, 3.81–8.23 cm3/m2 h, 15.74 %–27.34 %, and 3.90 %–7.56 %, respectively. Regarding the potential application of a fabricated indicator for freshness monitoring of silver carp fillets, total viable count, psychrotrophic bacterial count, pH, and total volatile basic nitrogen reached 8.91 log CFU/g, 8.03 log CFU/g, 8.10, and 40.18 mg N/100 g at the end of the study, respectively. Meanwhile, the CH-KC + MSE 4 % fiber mat color changed from white to green. These findings suggest that CH-KC + MSE 4 % fiber mats can be further utilized in the food industry to control the freshness of refrigerated silver carp fillets.