Improved mechanical, antibacterial and UV barrier properties of catechol-functionalized chitosan/polyvinyl alcohol biodegradable composites for active food packaging

Bioinspired from adhesion behaviors of mussels, we first reported a new strategy to prepare catechol-functionalized chitosan (C-CS)/polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) composite films via a solution blending method in neutral aqueous solution for active food packaging. Compared with pure PVA film, the UV transmittance (at 280 nm) of C-CS/PVA composite films decreases by 67.6 % when C-CS content reaches 10 wt%. Still, all the C-CS/PVA composite films are transparent in the visible range. The maximal tensile strength and elongation at break of C-CS/PVA composite films can reach 45.2 MPa and 153 % respectively, which are 46.3 % and 25.4 % higher than those of pure PVA film. The incorporation of C-CS into PVA matrix increases the antibacterial properties significantly. The water resistance of C-CS/PVA composite films can not be significantly deteriorated by the appropriate amount of C-CS. Therefore, C-CS/PVA composite films show great potential in the field of active packaging due to its good mechanical, antibacterial and UV barrier properties.