Preparation and Characterization of Chitosan/Gelatin-Based Active Food Packaging Films Containing Apple Peel Nanoparticles

Bio-based active food packaging containing natural antioxidants has gaining great attention these days. The food industry resulted in huge amount of waste rich in natural antioxidant and utilization of these wastes is very important from environmental viewpoint. In this study, apple peel was used to produce apple peel nanoparticles and later, chitosan (CS) and gelatin (G) based novel functional films were successfully fabricated. The prepared films were characterized for their structure, potential interaction and thermal stability. In addition, tensile strength and physical properties were also determined. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) results revealed that higher concentration of apple peel ethanolic extract (APEE) triggered the sintering of nanoparticles within the films. The data of Fourier transform-infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) and thermo-gravimetric analysis (TGA) revealed that the presence of apple peel related compounds in the films resulted decrease in availability of hydroxyl groups within the polymer matrix. The addition of APEE into CS/G significantly enhanced the physical properties of the film by increasing its thickness while solubility, swelling ratio, and water vapor permeability were decreased. It could be inferred that CS/G-APEE films exhibited good antioxidant properties, indicating that it could be developed as a bio-nanocomposite food packaging material for the food industry.