Properties and antimicrobial activity of wheat-straw nanocellulose-arabinoxylan acetate composite films incorporated with silver nanoparticles

Abstract

In the current study, the novel eco-friendly and biodegradable nanocomposite films (NC-AXAc) were prepared from wheat-straw NC and AXAc with improved functional properties. NC derived from wheat-straw cellulose has a fibre-like structure with mean-particle size in the 340–520 nm range. AX derived AXAc was prepared with Degree of Substitution (DS) in the range of 1.85–1.89. Furthermore, to enhance antimicrobial properties, AgNPs were prepared via the reduction method using NaBH4 and added into the concentration of 4 × 10−4M into the emulsion forming composite films. The silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) incorporated in the composite exhibited an average size of 40–70 nm and a surface plasmon resonance (SPR) absorption peak at 395 nm. The high-resolution XPS spectrum of the Ag element showed that the two peaks at around 374.2 eV (Ag3d3/2) and 368.2 eV (Ag3d5/2) clearly revealed the metallic Ag existence in composite films. SEM analysis revealed the coarse and heterogeneous morphology of AgNPs incorporated films. The AgNPs incorporated composites exhibited good mechanical, thermal stability, and antimicrobial activity. The results suggested that AgNPs incorporated NC-AXAc composites could be used as a potential biodegradable antimicrobial nanocomposite in active food packaging systems for shelf-life extension of perishable commodities.