Mechanical, Barrier and Thermal Properties of Zein/Montmorillonite Nanocomposite

The use of nanofillers is a good strategy to improve the properties of biopolymer-basedpackaging films. The present study prepared zein-based nanocomposite film containingmontmorillonite using the solvent casting method. Mechanical, barrier, and thermal properties of the film were investigated. The x-ray diffraction patterns indicated that the composite film has an exfoliated structure.The results showed that the montmorillonite significantly improved the mechanical, barrier, and thermal properties of the zein film. The highest elongation (9.65%) and tensile strength (22.62 MPa) were obtained for the zein nanocoposites containing 0 and 10% montmorillonite, respectively. Increasing the montmorillonite content from 0% to 5% decreased the water vapor permeability of the zein film from 1.73 to 1.23 (28%). This parameter significantly increased (1.93) in film containing 10% montmorillonite. The thermal degradation temperature of zein film increased (from 353 to 373 °C) by increasing the montmorillonite content from 0% to 10%. The results revealed that a small amount of montmorillonite can improve the mechanical and barrier properties of zein film, although uniform dispersion ofmontmorillonite in the zein network is essential to improving the properties of the film.Keyword: