Enhanced water vapour barrier and grease resistance of paper bilayer-coated with chitosan and beeswax

In order to overcome the deficiencies of single layer coating, bilayer coated papers were prepared by two separate coating procedures using various combinations of proteins or polysaccharides with beeswax. Among those combinations, chitosan–beeswax bilayer coated paper showed the best water vapour barrier property. It was observed that as the concentration of chitosan solution increased from 1.0 to 3.0 wt%, its water vapour transport rate (WVTR) decreased from 171.6 to 52.8 g/m2/d but using reduced beeswax coating weight (from 10.1 to 4.9 g/m2). It also displayed an enhanced performance of grease resistance. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) showed that beeswax layer was fitted to chitosan layer so closely that these two layers are indistinguishable. Confocal laser scanning microscope (CLSM) further confirmed the existence of an integrated chitosan film between beeswax layer and paper base and a thin composite layer consisting of chitosan and beeswax.