Polycaprolactone/chitosan electrospun nanofibrous membranes loaded Chinese yam polysaccharide for active food packaging

In this study, the electrospun nanofibrous membranes were prepared by blending electrospinning technology with Polycaprolactone/Chitosan (PCL/CS) as a spinning carrier and Chinese Yam Polysaccharide (CYP) as active material. The membranes were characterized and antimicrobial tested to determine whether they have potential value as food packaging. The results of SEM showed that the nanofiber membranes with different concentrations had good fiber morphology, the average fiber diameter was 313 ± 178 nm–426 ± 237 nm, and the PDI value indicated that the nanofiber was polydisperse. The addition of CYP enhanced the hydrophilicity and water solubility of the nanofiber membranes, but the mechanical strength of the membranes decreased. The spectra of FTIR and DSC indicated that the PCL/CS nanofiber membrane successfully loaded CYP, and the 4 % CYP nanofiber membrane had the best thermal stability. In vitro release tests also showed that most fibrous membranes still released CYP (56.4–81.7 %) after 240 h. In addition, the antibacterial zone diameter of PCL/CS/10 % CYP nanofiber membrane against Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus was 22.01 ± 1.23 mm and 18.40 ± 0.84 mm, respectively, showing obvious antibacterial effect. In the tomato antibacterial experiment, PCL/CS/10 % CYP nanofiber membrane effectively delayed the water-loss rot of cherry tomato and kept the weight loss rate of fruit at 17.6 ± 0.14 %. The results showed that PCL/CS/10% CYP nanofiber membrane had the best effect as active food packaging.