
Project
Physical, thermal and functional properties of hydrogel-based bioplastics used in food packaging
Bioplastic production of biobased material have been done with various compositions of the polymer backbones including starch or seaweed source. All of them focus on the formulations and physicochemical properties of resulted bioplastic. Also, with variations of purpose including easy degradation and compostable materials. Those gave a large option of material to be develop into any kind of applications. In this research, nanocellulose with itsinterphasial regionfor mechanical reinforcement, will combine with seaweed and cellulose-based hydrogel formulation. The bioplastic will be formulated using hydrogel-based material to form functional properties regarding the trapped excess water in food product. The hydrogel functional properties combined with each property of combined composition expected to complement each otherfor enhance the broader use of bioplastic for food. The moisture sorption will also be examined to determine Hydrogel-based bioplastic’s behaviour regarding the temperature and relative humidity. Moreover, to increase the physical properties related to temperature, examination of thermal properties including specific heat capacity, thermal diffusivity, and thermal conductivity value will be examined. Thus, will make more relatable correlations between material choice in the thermal properties of bioplastic for degradation and more specific usage for example in food packaging.