Progress 10/01/14 to 09/30/17
Outputs
Target Audience:This project targeted different groups and individuals at different levels of the study. At initial steps, graduate and undergraduate students gained firsthand experiences through laboratory experiences. Minority students, including three graduate students and four undergraduate students, benefitted from this project by completing their theses, dissertations and research projects. The successful impact of this project will benefit the food industry, particularly the food packaging industry as well as the fresh produce industry. Changes/Problems:
Nothing Reported
What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?Training activities: Students were trained on how to fabricate the film and provide the best possible nanocomposite film. They conducted different trials and determined the optimum concentration of each material to develop the film. They were also trained to use the high-tech instruments including X-ray diffraction, (XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) to examine the microstructure and chemical changes of the developed film. Professional development: Students also participated in several conferences including IFT Annual Meetings, 2016; NCAFCS Annual Conference, 2016; Annual Biomedical Research Conference for Minority Students (ABRCMS), 2016; and North Carolina American Society for Microbiology, 2015 for professional development purposes and to increase their knowledge in this field. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?
Nothing Reported
What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?
Nothing Reported
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
The first objective of this study was to develop a biodegradable nanocomposite film made of sweet potato starch, montmorillonite (MMT) nanoclay and thyme essential oil. To formulate this film for packaging, we set out to find the optimum concentrations of each of these materials. Therefore, in the first step sweet potato starch was extracted from sweet potatoes and mixed with water and glycerol to develop a biodegradable film. Although the developed film exhibited good film formability, the physico-mechanical characteristics of the film needed to be improved. Thus, adequate amounts of MMT were added to the sweet potato starch solution. According to the literatures, up to 5% of MMT has improved these properties. We have tested different concentrations and found out that an addition of 3% of MMT will result in stronger film for packaging. At the end, thyme essential oil as an antibacterial agent was incorporated in the film. In vitro studies have shown that thyme essential oil has strong antibacterial effect. Adding the oil did not deteriorate the texture and film formability. For the second objective of this study, the mechanical properties of the developed film (film thickness, elongation at break, tensile strength, young modulus), optical characterization (surface color measurement) microstructural analysis (X-ray diffraction, (XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), scanning electron microscopy (SEM)), as well as barrier properties (water solubility, and water vapor permeability), were investigated. Incorporating the MMT nano clay generally, improved the mechanical properties of the films. Adding the thyme oil also enhanced the optical and barrier properties of the bio-nanocomposite films. The third objective was concerning the antibacterial activities of the developed film both in vitro and on baby spinach leaves. Incorporating thyme oil significantly (P<0.05) increased the antibacterial activities of the films against E.coli and S. Typhi. The population of E. coli and S. Typhi were effectively reduced on fresh baby spinach leaves below detectable level within 5 days whereas the control samples without essential oil maintained approximately 4.5 Log CFU/g. Objective four of the study is to conduct a sensory evaluation of baby spinach leaves wrapped in the film during the storage time. This test has not yet been completed. The major impact of this project is that the developed biodegradable film could be used for the packaging of different types of fresh produce to replace some of the existing plastics.
Publications
- Type:
Journal Articles
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2017
Citation:
Issa, A., Ibrahim, S.A., & Tahergorabi, R. (2017). Impact of sweet potato starch-based nanocomposite films activated with thyme essential oil on the shelf-life of baby spinach leaves. Foods, 6, 43; DOI: 10.3390/foods6060043.
- Type:
Conference Papers and Presentations
Status:
Accepted
Year Published:
2017
Citation:
Tahergorabi R. Antibacterial and physical properties of sweet potato starch nanocomposites for food packaging. ARD Research Symposium 2017, Atlanta, GA.
- Type:
Conference Papers and Presentations
Status:
Accepted
Year Published:
2017
Citation:
Issa A, Sharaf Eddin A, Ibrahim S A, Dadsepah S A, & Tahergorabi R. Microstructure of nanocomposites films with sweet potato starch. NCAFCS Annual Conference, 2017, Charlotte, NC.
- Type:
Conference Papers and Presentations
Status:
Accepted
Year Published:
2017
Citation:
Issa A, Sharaf Eddin A, Ibrahim S A, Dadsepah S A, & Tahergorabi R. Effect of nanoparticles and essential oil on physical characteristics of biodegradable films. NCAFCS Annual Conference, 2017, Charlotte, NC.
- Type:
Theses/Dissertations
Status:
Other
Year Published:
2017
Citation:
Aseel Issa. Biodegradable Nanocomposite Films Based on Sweet Potato Starch: Development, Characterization, and Their Antimicrobial Effects on the Shelf-Life of Packed Baby Spinach Leaves. Summer 2017.
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Progress 10/01/15 to 09/30/16
Outputs
Target Audience:The successful impact of this project will benefit the food industry particularly food packaging industry as well as fresh produce industry. This project targets different groups and individuals at different levels of study. At initial steps, graduate and undergraduate students gained first-hand experiences through laboratory experiences. Minority students including three graduate students and four undergraduate students have benefitted from this project by conducting their theses, dissertations and research projects. Changes/Problems:
Nothing Reported
What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?Training activities: Students were trained how to fabricate the film and provide the best possible nanocomposite film. They have tried different trials and found out the optimum concentration of each material to develop the film. They have been also trained on using the high tech instruments including X-ray diffraction, (XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) to examine the microstructure and chemical changes of the developed film. Professional development: Students also participated in several conferences including IFT Annual Meetings, 2016, NCAFCS Annual Conference, 2016, Annual Biomedical Research Conference for Minority Students (ABRCMS), 2016, and North Carolina American Society for Microbiology, 2015 for professional development purposes and increase their knowledge in this filed. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Results from this research were presented at the "Small Farms Field Day" on June 30, 2016 at the NC A&T SU farm through the cooperative extension program. This is an outreach event for the public and farmers to educate them about our research. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?
Nothing Reported
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
The major impact of this project is the development of a biodegradable film that could be used for the packaging of different types of fresh produce to replace some of the existing plastics, thus reducing wastewhile increasing produce value for the consumer and removing added plastics from the environment. The first objective of this study was to develop a biodegradable nanocomposite film made of sweet potato starch, montmorillonite (MMT) nanoclay and thyme essential oil. In order to formulate this film for packaging we required to find the optimum concentrations of each of these materials. Therefore, in the first step sweet potato starch was extracted from sweet potatoes and mixed with water and glycerol to develop a biodegradable film. Although the developed film exhibited good film formability but the physico-mechanical characteristics of the film needed to be improved. Thus, adequate amount of MMT was added to the sweet potato starch solution. According to the literatures, up to 5% of MMT has improved these properties. We have tested different concentrations and found out that addition of 3% of MMT will result in stronger film for packaging. At the end, thyme essential oil as an antibacterial agent was incorporated in the film. In vitro studies have shown that thyme essential oil has strong antibacterial effect. Addition of the oil did not deteriorate the texture and film formability. For the second objective of this study, the mechanical properties of the developed film (film thickness, elongation at break, tensile strength, young modulus), optical characterization (surface color measurement) microstructural analysis (X-ray diffraction, (XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), scanning electron microscopy (SEM)), as well as barrier properties (water solubility, and water vapor permeability) were investigated. Incorporation of the MMT nano clay generally, improved the mechanical properties of the films. Addition of the thyme oil also enhanced the optical and barrier properties of the bio-nanocomposite films. The third objective was concerning about the antibacterial activities of the developed film both in vitro and on baby spinach leaves. Incorporation of thyme oil significantly (P<0.05) increased the antibacterial activities of the films against E.coli and S. Typhi. The population of E. coli and S. Typhi were effectively reduced on fresh baby spinach leaves below detectable level within 5 days whereas the control samples without essential oil maintained approximately 4.5 Log CFU/g. Sensory evaluation of baby spinach leaves wrapped in the film during the storage time is objective four of this study. This test has not been completed yet.
Publications
- Type:
Journal Articles
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2016
Citation:
Issa A, Ibrahim SA, Tahergorabi R. (2016). Sweet Potato Starch/ Clay Nanocomposite Film: New Material for Emerging Biodegradable Food packaging. MOJ Food processing & Technology 3(3): 00073. DOI: 10.15406/mojfpt.2016.03.00073
- Type:
Other
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2016
Citation:
Issa A, & Tahergorabi R. Preparation and characterization of a bionanocomposite film based on sweet potato starch and thyme essential oil. IFT Annual Meetings Abstract Book, 2016, Chicago, IL.
- Type:
Conference Papers and Presentations
Status:
Other
Year Published:
2016
Citation:
Issa A., & Tahergorabi R. Development of a novel antimicrobial nanocomposite film for food packaging. Proceedings of NCAFCS Annual Conference, 2016, New Bern, NC.
- Type:
Conference Papers and Presentations
Status:
Other
Year Published:
2016
Citation:
Tahergorabi R, Issa A., Wilson C, & Ibrahim S .Evaluation of the antibacterial activities of nanocomposite films against foodborne pathogens on spinach leaves . Annual Biomedical Research Conference for Minority Students (ABRCMS), 2016, Tampa, Florida.
- Type:
Journal Articles
Status:
Other
Year Published:
2016
Citation:
Tahergorabi R, Issa A., Jones J, & Ibrahim S. Antibacterial and physico-mechanical properties of sweet potato starch nanocomposite films enriched with thyme essential oil. Proceeding of North Carolina American Society for Microbiology, 2015, NC State University, NC.
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Progress 10/01/14 to 09/30/15
Outputs
Target Audience:The eventual target audience would include the food industry particularly fresh produce industry as well as food packaging industry. This project also targets different groups and individuals at different levels of study. At initial steps, graduate and undergraduate students gained first-hand experiences through laboratory experiences. Two graduate students and two undergraduate students have benefitted from this project by conducting their theses, dissertations and research projects. Once the project completed the obtained results will be published and disseminated through peer-reviewed journals. Changes/Problems:
Nothing Reported
What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?Students were trained how to fabricate the film and provide the best possible nanocomposite film. They have tried different trials and found out the optimum concentration of each material to develop the film. We are in the process of finalizing this formula to move forward to the next objective. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?
Nothing Reported
What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?This project is composed of four different objectives and researchers are planning to accomplish the next two objectives for the next reporting period: Objective 2: Evaluate the physico-mechanical characteristics of the films: different physico-mechanical properties of the film will be evaluated including film thickness, water vapor permeability, oxygen permeability, tensile strength, and color values. Objective 3: Investigate the antibacterial activity of the films on inoculated baby spinach leaves. Soon after conducting the tests related to physico-mechanical tests we will proceed to test the antibacterial effects of the films containing thyme essential oil on baby spinach leaves during storage time.
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
This project was initiated in October 2014. The first objective of this study was to develop a biodegradable nanocomposite film made of sweet potato starch, Montmorillonite (MMT) nanoclay and thyme essential oil. In order to formulate this film for packaging researchers were required to find the optimum concentrations of each of these materials. Therefore, in the first step sweet potato starch was extracted from sweet potatoes and mixed with water and glycerol to develop a biodegradable film. Although the developed film exhibited good film formability but the physico-mechanical characteristics of the film needed to be improved. Thus, adequate amounts of MMT was added to the sweet potato starch solution. According to the literatures, up to 5 percent of MMT has improved these properties. We have tested different concentrations and found that addition of 3 percent of MMT will result in stronger film for packaging. At the end, thyme essential oil as an antibacterial agent was incorporated in the film. In vitro studies have shown that thyme essential oil has strong antibacterial effect. Addition of the oil did not deteriorate the texture and film formability. The major impact of this project is that the developed biodegradable film could be used for the packaging of different types of fresh fruits and vegetables to replace some of the existing plastics.
Publications
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