Orange Juice Processing Waste As a Biopolymer Base For Biodegradable Film Formation Reinforced With Cellulose Nanofiber and Activated With Nettle Essential Oil

Abstract Concerns about environmental problems have led to the development of biodegradable packaging. Food wastes as a byproduct could be a good source for biopolymers. This study described the physical and antimicrobial features of nano biocomposite films based on orange waste powder (OWP) with different concentrations of nettle essential oil (NEO) (1.5 and 3 %) as an antibacterial agent and cellulose nanofiber (CNF) (3 and 6 %) as a structural reinforcement. Thus, tensile strength, elongation at break, water vapor permeability, FE-SEM, FTIR, XRD, DSC, and antimicrobial properties were investigated. As a result, adding CNF improved the tensile strength and water barrier properties of the samples. Compared to the control film, adding NEO (3 %) decreased the tensile strength but increased water vapor permeability and melting temperature. Moreover, the OWP film samples had an antimicrobial effect against five foodborne pathogens. Although, adding NEO increased antimicrobial properties, adding CNF did not exhibit antimicrobial effects. Consequently, orange waste could be used to produce an active film with improved physicomechanical and antibacterial properties by incorporating CNF and NEO.