Preparation of active films based on carboxymethyl cellulose-chitosan-oleic acid containing ginger essential oils and investigation of physical, antifungal and antioxidant properties

The aim of this study was to produce antimicrobial films based on carboxymethyl cellulose- chitosanoleic acid (CMC-CH-OL) containing different concentrations of ginger essential oil (GEO) in order to study the structural, physical, antioxidant, and antifungal properties of the films. The results of Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) confirmed some hydrogen bonding formation between film matrix and GEO. Water vapor permeability (WVP) of the CMC-CH-OL film decreased from 5.28 ×10-7 to 0.99 ×10-7 g/m.h.Pa in the film incorporated with the highest concentration of GEO (GEO3). Based on the obtained results from WVP, contact angle and FTIR, it can be concluded that the addition of GEO with hydrophobic nature, led to an improvement in water barrier properties of films. The results of mechanical test revealed an increase in elongation at break (EB) and a decrease in tensile strength (TS) for the films containing GEO (p