Impact of Curdlan Addition on the Properties of Konjac Glucomannan/Ethyl Cellulose Composite Films

Abstract

AbstractAn edible film containing both hydrophilic and hydrophobic components could have good mechanical and moisture barrier properties at the same time. Previous research indicated the high potential of konjac glucomannan (KGM) and ethyl cellulose (EC) film in the development of novel edible films, and this study aimed to further improve the hydrophobicity and film properties by addition of curdlan to prepare KGM/curdlan/EC ternary composite films. Results indicated that the addition could significantly change the water contact angle, moisture barrier properties, and mechanical properties of the KGM/EC films, and the optimum addition amount is considered to be 20% of the total weight of KGM and EC. The SEM images, FTIR, and XRD results indicated that the molecular interaction between curdlan and other film components is relatively weak, and this is probably cause by that curdlan remained in the triple‐helix structure under the preparation condition. Therefore curdlan should mainly act as the filling components of the films, and too low or too high addition amount led to decreased mechanical and water vapor permeability properties. The obtained results may offer suggestions to prepare ternary composite edible films with curdlan addition.