UV-blocking properties of carboxymethyl cellulose film integrated with oolong tea extracts as eco-friendly packaging film

The preparation of biodegradable UV protective carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC) films using extracted phenolic compounds from oolong tea (O) as bio-fillers to improve UV-blocking capability has been studied. The properties of the CMC and CMC/O films including color, transmission infrared spectra, moisture uptake, water vapor permeability, thermal properties, tensile properties, %reduction of UV transmittance and biodegradability were examined The total amount of phenolic compounds from oolong tea extracts was determined as 0.1577 ± 0.0018 g of compound per 15 g of oolong tea powder. The addition of oolong tea extracts to CMC matrices improved the reduction of UV transmittance of the films. It was observed that CMC/O films with 2 % v/v oolong tea extracts gave a %reduction of UV transmittance for all UVC, UVB and UVA ranges comparable to that of the oolong tea extracts. Moreover, the addition of oolong tea extracts led to a decrease in water vapor permeability of the CMC/O films. The results indicated that carboxymethyl cellulose films filled with oolong tea extracts have potential for an application of UV radiation reduction packaging. © 2022