Abstract
The permeation of five volatile organic compounds found in Iberian ham aroma (n-hexanal, n-hexanol, n-decane, ethyl caproate, and d-limonene) through films of ultra-low-density polyethylene (ULDPE) and two metallocene copolymers was evaluated at 23 °C. Values of the diffusion, permeability, and solubility coefficients were determined. The polymer films were characterized by differential scanning calorimetry, size exclusion chromatography, and oxygen permeability. Compared to ULDPE, the metallocene copolymers were lower in molecular weight, showed narrower molecular weight distributions, presented less crystallinity, and offered greater oxygen permeability. Solubility coefficient values were lower for compounds having higher polarity, and diffusion coefficients were higher for compounds of smaller molecular size. The permeability coefficients, which combine the effects of diffusion and sorption contributions, indicated that the films were more permeable to nonpolar small-size aromas. Overall, metallocene copolymers showed higher permeability values than ULDPE. Keywords: Metallocene polyethylene; aroma permeation; polarity; size
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