Assessment of Biodegradable Blends of Poly(Vinyl Alcohol) and Chitosan for Food Industry and Biomedical Application

Chitosan (CS), an amino polysaccharide, is a rigid polymer due to the availability of two types of reactive primary and secondary hydroxyl groups (-OH). It is also biodegradable, biocompatible, non-toxic, safe, and antibacterial polymer which makes it applicable in food industry and biomedical applications. Therefore, development of biodegradable films based on poly (vinyl alcohol) (PVA) and chitosan (CS) for possible use in food packaging and biomedical applications are reported. The objective of this study is to develop low cost biodegradable PVA/CS film by solution casting method using glutaraldehyde as a cross linking agent. The intermolecular interactions between constituents of polymer blends and mechanical properties were studied using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and microhardness techniques, respectively. Composting was used to investigate the degradation features of PVA/CS films. The absorption bands in the FTIR spectra of PVA and PVA/CS blends varied, indicating interactions between the blend's components. The marten hardness (HM) value changed from an initial value of 83.08 MPa in the pure PVA to a value of 142.18 MPa (highest value) in 40% wt. of chitosan content. Chitosan increased the mechanical stiffness of PVA/CS blends up to 40% loading, and the ideal composition for greatest enhancement of mechanical characteristics of the blend was discovered. This is because of blending leads to an intermolecular interaction between two polymers and improves mechanical strength of the blends. The rate of degradation of blends was observed to rise as the chitosan level increased.