Morphology, Structure and Thermal Properties of Human Hair Keratin/ Egg White Protein Blend Particles: Influence of Different Crosslinking Agents

Abstract

The effect of studied crosslinking agents viz. acetic acid, polyethylene glycol diglycidyl ether (PEGDE) and genipin on the morphology, structure and thermal properties of human hair keratin/egg white protein (HHK/EWP) blend particles were investigated. The HHK/EWP blend particles were prepared by the reported water-in-oil emulsification solvent diffusion method with the addition of selected crosslinking agents. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) images revealed that the use of these agents resulted in spherical HHK/EWP particles with variable sizes, arranged in the order of increasing particle sizes as follows: acetic acid, PEGDE and genipin. The addition of the crosslinking agents enhanced the interactions between the proteins, as indicated by the shift of peak positions in FTIR spectra. Moreover, the interactions also increased the decomposition temperature of the HHK/EWP blend particles. The obtained results provided important information to further improve the properties of HHK/EWP blend particles for a wider range of applications.