Development and mechanical characterisation of packaging materials based on plant leaves: Case of Musa sapientum leaves

Abstract

The development of biodegradable food packaging is one of the environmental protection issues. The aims of this study is the development and mechanical characterisation of bio-composites that can be used as food packaging based on Musa sapientum leaves and cassava starch. The physical characterisation of the constituents showed that the water content of the starch and the leaf fibres used are 10.44 ± 0.51% and 10.88 ± 1.08% respectively. The water absorption capacity of the leaf fibres and the starch are respectively 33.33 ± 4.44% and 76.67 ± 4.44%. Particle size analysis has shown that 99.93% of the fibres used are less than 1mm in size. The material samples were made by compression moulding and are composed of 10 to 25% starch with 50% water. The Young's modulus in bending of the materials produced varies between 0.07 and 3.37 MPa and the breaking strength in bending between 5.48 and 29.29 MPa. These two parameters increase with the starch content. In tensile strength, the materials obtained are fragile and have low deformation at break varying from 0.61% to 1.53%. The tensile strength of these materials varies between 0.01 and 0.99 MPa and increases with the starch content. The best formulations would be those containing 20% starch with 50% water. The process developed could enable the development of innovative materials for biodegradable food packaging.