Sustainable and eco-friendly poly (Lactic acid)/cellulose nanocrystal nanocomposite films for the preservation of oxygen-sensitive food
Open accessAbstract
The development of enzymatic browning constitutes one of the key issues in the preservation of highly perishable fresh-cut and oxygen-sensitive fruits such as avocados. This study explored the use of a packaging solution based on PLA/cellulose nanocrystal (CNC) films produced using a solvent-free cast extrusion process with strong oxygen and UV barrier properties to reduce browning in cut avocados and to prolong shelf life. Specifically, the effects of packaging material types (neat PLA vs PLA/CNC nanocomposite) and storage conditions (temperature and time) on discoloration (browning), microbial growth, and shelf life were assessed. Enzymatic browning was visually evaluated and total discoloration (ΔE*) quantified as a function of storage time and temperature to estimate the shelf life of the avocados. Compared with neat PLA, nanocomposite packaging reduced the enzymatic browning more and resulted in additional shelf life extension of 1.3 days at 23 °C and 5.4 days at 4 °C. Both PLA-based films reduced the microbial growth. The potential of sustainable and eco-friendly nanocomposite film to prolong the shelf life of food that is oxygen sensitive is clearly demonstrated.
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Melt processing techniques for PLA/NC are environmentally favorable and scalable.
“industrial relevance has driven growing interest in melt processing techniques, which are environmentally favorable and scalable [14,18,19,78]”
From Nanocellulose-Reinforced Poly(Lactic Acid) and Poly(ε-caprolactone) Bio-Nanocomposites: A Review and Future Outlook for Poly(Lactic Acid)/Poly(ε-caprolactone) Blend Systems (2025) · cites this paper as [78]
Section 2.2 describes producing PLA/CNC films by twin-screw extrusion, and the Introduction calls the resulting films eco-friendly because they derive from renewable resources. The paper does not establish that the melt-processing technique itself is environmentally favorable or scalable; those parts of the claim are unsupported. (LLM, conf=0.82)
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- Authors
- Wongthanaroj, D., Jessmore, L. A., Lin, Y., Bergholz, T. M., Stark, N. M., Sabo, R. C., & Matuana, L. M.
- Affiliations
- Michigan State University (US)
- Forest Products Laboratory (US)
- Corresponding author
- Matuana, Laurent M.
- ORCID
- Venue
- Applied Food Research
- Publisher
- Elsevier BV
- Published
- 2022-12
- Volume
- 2
- Issue
- 2
- Pages
- 100222
- ISSN
- 2772-5022 (ISSN-L)
- OpenAlex
- W4297199885
- Cited by
- 19
- References
- 39
- Citations by year
- 2026: 4 · 2025: 6 · 2024: 8 · 2023: 1
- FWCI
- 0.94
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- gold
- doi.org
- Licence
- Locations
- Applied Food Research (publishedVersion, cc-by-nc-nd)
- DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) (submittedVersion, cc-by-sa)
- Funders
- U.S. Department of Agriculture
- Michigan State University
- National Institute of Food and Agriculture (1017725)
- College of Engineering, Michigan State University
- U.S. Forest Service
- Topics
- Physical Sciences › Materials Science › Biomaterials › Nanocomposite Films for Food Packaging
- Life Sciences › Agricultural and Biological Sciences › Plant Science › Postharvest Quality and Shelf Life Management
- Physical Sciences › Materials Science › Biomaterials › Advanced Cellulose Research Studies
- Keywords
- polylactic acid, cellulose nanocrystals, nanocomposite films, edible packaging, enzymatic browning, avocado, fresh-cut fruit, oxygen barrier, UV barrier, shelf life extension, microbial growth, discoloration, storage temperature, sustainable packaging
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