Preparation and Characterization of Carboxymethyl Cellulose/Polyvinyl Alcohol Blend Film as a Potential Coating Material

The blend film is a favorable coating material for control-release fertilizer. The biodegradable blend film had been prepared by cross-linking carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC) and polyvinyl alcohol (PVA). The results showed that the increase of the PVA content made water absorbency, water permeability and permeability of the blend films decrease. The increase of formaldehyde resulted in the decrease of absorbency and permeability. The cross-linking reaction between PVA and CMC was confirmed using X-ray diffraction and Fourier transform infrared absorption spectra. The prepared CMC/PVA blend film had the smooth surface. The good biodegradability implies that the CMC/PVA blend film may be a potential coating material for the application in the control-release fertilizer.