Reactive coating of soybean oil-based polymer on nanofibrillated cellulose film for water vapor barrier packaging

Nanofibrillated cellulose (NFC) easily forms a high strength film but is unable to withstand the influence of water vapor when used in high moisture situations. The water vapor transmission rate (WVTR) of a NFC film was as high as 5088 g/m2 24 h (38 °C, 90% RH). The addition of beeswax latex in a NFC casting film (NFX) lowered the WVTR to 3918 g/m2 24 h. To further reduce the WVTR, a coating agent comprised of acrylated epoxidized soybean oil (AESO) and 3-aminopropyltriethoxysilane (APTS) was applied onto the NFX film using a rod coater. A combination of the suitable AESO/APTS ratio, initiator dosing, curing time and temperature could reduce the WVTR to 188 g/m2 24 h when the coat weight was 5 g/m2. Moreover, the coated NFX film was highly hydrophobic along with the improved transparency and thermal stability. This biodegradable polymer-coated NFC film can be used as potential packaging barrier in certain areas.