Improving Mildew Resistance of Soy Meal by Nano-Ag/TiO2, Zinc Pyrithione and 4-Cumylphenol

As a byproduct from the soybean oil industry, soy meal can be reproduced into value-added products to replace formaldehyde as a plywood adhesive. However, the use of soy meal has been limited by its poor antifungal and antiseptic properties. In this work, three kinds of material, namely nano-Ag/TiO2, zinc pyrithione, and 4-cumylphenol were applied to enhance the mildew resistance of soy meal via breakdown of the cellular structure of mildew. The fungi and mold resistance, morphology, thermal properties, and mechanism of the modified soy meal were evaluated. The success of the antifungal and antiseptic properties was confirmed by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and scanning electron microscopy. The results indicated that all three kinds of material improved the fungi and mold resistance of soy meal, and sample B, which was modified with a compound of nano-Ag/TiO2 and zinc pyrithione, was the effective antifungal raw material for the soy-based adhesives. FTIR indicated that the great improvement of antifungal properties of soy meal modified with 4-cumylphenol might be caused by the reaction between COO- groups of soy protein. This research can help understand the effects of the chemical modification of nano-Ag/TiO2, zinc pyrithione, and 4-cumylphenol on soy meal, and the modified soy meal exhibits potential for utilization in the plywood adhesive industry.