Development of a multifunctional active food packaging membrane based on electrospun polyvinyl alcohol/chitosan for preservation of fruits

To mitigate environmental impacts in food preservation, the development of a multifunctional membrane for packaging is of importance. In this study, we have successfully fabricated a nanofibrous membrane using an eco-friendly electrospinning technique, comprising polyvinyl alcohol (PVA), chitosan (CS), and tannic acid (TA). The resulting nanofibrous membranes were crosslinked with glutaraldehyde (GA) and surface modified with ZnO. Our findings demonstrate that the crosslinking process enhances water resistance, reduces water vapor permeability, improves tensile strength (from 3 to 18 MPa), and enhances thermal stability (increasing decomposition temperature from 225 °C to 310 °C). Furthermore, the incorporation of TA and ZnO provides antioxidant properties to the membrane, effectively preventing food decomposition caused by UV-induced oxidation. Additionally, CS, TA, and ZnO synergistically exhibit a remarkable antibacterial effect with a bacteriostasis rate exceeding 99.9 %. The strawberry fresh-keeping experiment further confirms that our developed membrane significantly extends shelf life by up to 6 days. Moreover, cytotoxicity assays confirm the non-toxic nature of these membranes. The innovative significance of this study lies in proposing a robust GA-PVA/CS/TA@ZnO nanofibrous membrane with excellent mechanical properties, biocompatibility, and multiple functionalities including antibacterial, anti-ultraviolet, and anti-oxidation capabilities. It has tremendous potential for applications in active food packaging materials.