Choline chloride and citric acid mixture- A green alternative for the preparation of chitosan based films

International Conference and Exhibition on Biopolymers & Bioplastics

August 10-12, 2015 San Francisco, USA

Hil�©ia K S Souza, Andrea C Galvis-S�¡nchez, Ana M M Sousa and Maria P Gon�§alves

Posters-Accepted Abstracts: J Material Sci Eng

Abstract :

Non-biodegradable plastics are one of the top environmental threats faced by terrestrial and marine ecosystems. In the field
of food packaging, alternative bio-based plastics have been deeply researched because of their good biodegradability,
biocompatibility and the abundance of biomass resources. In this sense, polysaccharides such as starch, cellulose and chitosan are
the main polysaccharides used for the manufacture of bioplastics and as such, can be used as barrier materials in food packaging.
In the particular case of chitosan biofilms, an important drawback is their high moisture sensitivity and its impact on the packaged
foods. Efforts to solve this issue (e.g. addition of plasticizers, use of chemically-modified chitosans, etc.) led to poorer biodegradability,
potential food contamination, and/or degradation of the mechanical properties.
We present an innovative and to the best of our knowledge, unexplored approach based on the use of environmentally friendly lowmelting
mixtures recently referred to as Natural Deep Eutectic Solvents (NADES) which are expected to play the role of biodegradable
“plasticizer”. Specifically, we report on mixtures of chitosan / choline chloride / citric acid (CHIT/ChCl/CA) for the fabrication of
transparent films by compression molding. Formulations were optimized for best mechanical properties. The plasticizing capacity
of the selected eutectic mixturewas evaluated by assessing the mechanical, water resistance, microstructure properties of the films
and comparedwith films prepared using just CHIT/CA in the formulation at optimized processing conditions. As results, CHIT/
ChCl/CA films were significantly different from those using just CA. Brittle structure of chitosan/CA films was improved by ChCl
incorporation in the polymer blend.

Biography :

Hiléia K S Souza received her PhD from the Chemistry Department of the Faculty of Sciences, University of Porto. Currently she is a Research Assistant at the
REQUIMTE- Laboratório Associado para a Química Verde, Tecnologias e Processos Limpos at the University of Porto. Her main research interests now are
centered on the study of biomolecules (polysaccharides and proteins) with interest for the food industry. She has published more than 25 papers in international
peer reviewed journals. She presented her results in many scientific meetings in the form of poster or invited talks.