A new nanohybrid particle reinforced multifunctional active packaging film for efficiently preserving postharvest fruit

This study aimed to develop a multifunctional active packaging film for fruit preservation. In detail, a series of gelatin (Gel) composite films were prepared by employing chitosan-ferulic acid-titanium dioxide nanohybrid particles (CFT NPs) as filler into Gel film and then their structural, physical, and functional properties were characterized to determine a nanocomposite film with the optimal performances. The results showed that syn-thesized CFT NPs posed exceptional performances (UV absorption, antioxidant activity, antibacterial ability, etc). After incorporating into Gel film, CFT-Gel films possessed denser network structure owing to the hydrogen bond connection between Gel and CFT NPs. The addition of CFT NPs significantly (P < 0.05) enhanced mechanical and barrier properties for water vapor, oxygen, and carbon dioxide of nanocomposite films, especially for CFT-Gel film with 0.40 mg/mL of CFT NPs (CFT0.40-Gel). CFT0.40-Gel film also showed enhanced UV shielding (-100% at 200-400 nm), antioxidant ability (2-fold-3-fold enhancement), and high relative bacteriostatic rate (>95% against Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus under ultraviolet catalysis due to the generation of reactive oxygen species). Moreover, hemolysis assay proved the good bio-safety of CFT-Gel films. Further, CFT0.40-Gel film was successfully applied in the preservation of non-climacteric fruit (strawberries) and climacteric fruit (bananas), as the evidence of its good preservation ability. Therefore, the multifunctional CFT0.40-Gel film possessed great application prospect in fruit preservation. Meanwhile, this work provided a feasible strategy for designing a multifunctional active food packaging.

Automated summary

This study aimed to develop a multifunctional active packaging film for fruit preservation by incorporating chitosan-ferulic acid-titanium dioxide nanohybrid particles (CFT NPs) into gelatin (Gel) film. The addition of CFT NPs significantly enhanced the mechanical and barrier properties, UV shielding ability, antioxidant activity, and antibacterial ability of the composite film. Particularly, CFT0.40-Gel film demonstrated excellent preservation ability for strawberries and bananas. This work provides a feasible strategy for designing multifunctional active food packaging.