Preparation of Antioxidant and Antibacterial Dialdehyde Cellulose/Gelatin Composite Films Containing Wintergreen Oil for Food Preservation

Ge Tian; Jin Cao; Jia Deng; Qian Chen; Yanfei Niu; Chunhua Wu

From The Journal:

ES Food and Agroforestry

Volume ,

Preparation of Antioxidant and Antibacterial Dialdehyde Cellulose/Gelatin Composite Films Containing Wintergreen Oil for Food Preservation

Authors
Authors and affiliations

Ge Tian, Jin Cao, Jia Deng, Qian Chen, Yanfei Niu and Chunhua Wu

Ge Tian^1,#

Jin Cao^1,#

Jia Deng²

Qian Chen¹

Yanfei Niu^{3, Email}

Chunhua Wu^{1, Email}

¹Key Laboratory of State Forestry and Grassland Administration on Highly-Efficient Utilization of Forestry Biomass Resources in Southwest China, Southwest Forestry University, Kunming, Yunnan, 650224, China
²Key Laboratory for Forest Resources Conservation and Use in the Southwest Mountains of China, Ministry of Education, Southwest Forestry University, Kunming, Yunnan, 650224, China
³Chinese Medicinal Resources Division, Yunnan Baiyao Group, Kunming, Yunnan, 650500, China
^#These authors contributed equally to this work.

Abstract

This study prepared a gelatin-dialdehyde cellulose (DAC)/wintergreen oil composite film (GDM) to address the environmental issue of petroleum-based food packaging materials being difficult to degrade and to improve the disadvantages of pure gelatin films, such as poor mechanical strength, high water sensitivity, and lack of antibacterial properties. The composite film was characterized by FTIR, and its mechanical, optical, antibacterial, and antioxidant properties were tested. Seedless red grapes and chili peppers were used to evaluate the preservation effect of the Gelatin-Dialdehyde Cellulose/Wintergreen Oil Composite Film with 5% Wintergreen Oil (GDM5) film. Results showed that DAC addition significantly improved water resistance and mechanical strength by forming a cross-linked network that reduced water vapor permeability. Wintergreen oil further enhanced hydrophobicity, mechanical properties, Ultraviolet (UV)-blocking, antioxidant activity, and antibacterial efficacy. The GDM5 film inhibited Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) and Escherichia coli (E. coli) by 98.33% and 93.47%, respectively. Preservation tests demonstrated that GDM5 effectively reduced decay and weight loss, slowed declines in titratable acidity and total phenolic content, and inhibited microbial growth compared to controls, significantly extending shelf life. This environmentally friendly composite film provides experimental evidence for developing sustainable food packaging materials.