Preparation, process optimization, and performance study of tea polyphenol-sodium alginate/ethyl cellulose composite microcapsules for green slow-release formaldehyde capture agent

Aiming at the problem of prolonged formaldehyde release from artificial boards, a green slow-release formaldehyde scavenger was proposed in this study. Tea polyphenol microcapsules (TPM) were prepared by ionic gel-solvent evaporation method using sodium alginate/ethyl cellulose as the wall material and tea polyphenol as the core material. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) analysis showed that the TPM exhibited the same characteristic absorption peaks as those of tea polyphenol, ethyl cellulose and sodium alginate. This indicates that the TPM was successfully prepared and the thermal stability of TPM meets the requirements of the hot pressing process of man-made boards. The optimal process of TPM was as follows: the mass ratio of tea polyphenol to ethyl cellulose was 2.58, the dosage of emulsifier was 1.01 g, and the mass fraction of sodium alginate was 17.23%, the encapsulation rate of TPM was 78.31%, and the average particle size was 18.69 ± 4.66 μm. After 180 min. After 180 min, the aldehyde reduction efficiency was 61.08%. In conclusion, TPM meets the requirements of the production process of wood-based panels and the need for continuous control of formaldehyde emission from wood-based panels.