Preparation, characterization, and oxygen barrier properties of regenerated cellulose/polyvinyl alcohol blend films

The application of cellulose materials for packaging usage has attracted a large amount of attention in recent years. In this study, cellulose was dissolved in a cold NaOH/urea solution. Transparent, strong, and flexible regenerated cellulose/polyvinyl alcohol (PVOH) films were fabricated via a solution blending and casting process. The physicochemical properties of the neat RC films, PVOH films, and RC-PVOH blend films were characterized via scanning electron microscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, thermogravimetric analysis, tensile tests, gas permeability, and ultraviolet-visible spectroscopy. The results of the physicochemical characterizations indicated that the RC-PVOH composite films with various PVOH contents yielded strong properties in terms of optical transparency, thermal stability, mechanical strength, and oxygen barrier performance. The RC-PVOH films with 8% PVOH loading exhibited a peak degradation temperature of 362 °C, a tensile strength of 80.8 MPa ± 0.3 MPa, and an oxygen permeability of 2.40 cm3 x μm/m2 x 24 h x kPa. The RC-PVOH composite films could be a competitive alternative as a packaging material to replace petroleum-based plastics.