Antioxidant Film Based on Chitosan and Tulsi Essential Oil for Food Packaging

In this study, chitosan film incorporating tulsi essential oil (TEO) with good antioxidant properties was solvent casted as an antioxidant packaging film. The antioxidant films were studied for the morphological, chemical, thermal, water barrier, mechanical, and antioxidant behaviors. The presence of TEO was confirmed by infrared spectroscopy and electron microscopy. Thermal degradation study was also conducted to know the thermal stability of these films. TEO-containing films showed a decrement in moisture content, water absorption, water solubility, and water vapor transfer rate (WVTR). An increase in tensile and elongation was noted as TEO content increased, with the highest mechanical properties in T2 film (chitosan-to-oil ratio of 4:1), depicting better networking of chitosan chains and TEO components and the effect of plasticization of TEO on the chitosan. The films containing TEO showed better antioxidant activity than neat chitosan film, as confirmed by DPPH (2,2,-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl) and H2O2-scavenging assays. Finally, fried potato fingers were packed in the active chitosan packaging and compared with the neat chitosan. The T2 film showed better antioxidant activity against the oxidation of oil in fried potato fingers which was confirmed by the FTIR of the packed product.