Antibacterial [2-(Methacryloyloxy) ethyl] Trimethylammonium Chloride Functionalized Reduced Graphene Oxide/Poly(ethylene-co-vinyl alcohol) Multilayer Barrier Film for Food Packaging

• Published in: Journal of agricultural and food chemistry Vol. 66; no. 3; pp. 732 - 739
• Main Authors: Wang, Hualin, Chen, Minmin, Jin, Chongyang, Niu, Baicheng, Jiang, Suwei, Li, Xingjiang, Jiang, Shaotong
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States American Chemical Society 24-01-2018
• Subjects: antibacterial activity; functionalized reduced graphene oxide; active packaging; layer-by-layer assembly; barrier
• ISSN: 0021-8561; 1520-5118
• DOI: 10.1021/acs.jafc.7b04784

The objective of present work was to construct antibacterial [2-(methacryloyloxy) ethyl] trimethylammonium chloride functionalized reduced graphene oxide/poly­(ethylene-co-vinyl alcohol) (MTAC-rGO/EVOH) multilayer barrier films by using layer-by-layer assembly under a parallel electric field. Besides barrier and mechanical properties, the antibacterial activities of the film and cytotoxicity of MTAC-rGO nanosheets were extensively investigated. The functionalization of rGO was achieved by grafting MTAC onto a graphene framework through C (sp3)-C bonds. The assembly of MTAC-rGO on the EVOH matrix not only significantly improved film mechanical strength, but also endowed the targeting film with outstanding moisture barrier even under a relative humidity of 99% (e.g., 0.019 g m–2 s–1 atm–1 for (MTAC-rGO/EVOH)20) besides good oxygen barrier (e.g., 0.07 cm3 m–2 d–1 atm–1 for (MTAC-rGO/EVOH)20). Among the testing films, MTAC-rGO/EVOH film had the best antibacterial activity, and the activity against S. aureus was better than E. coli. Meanwhile, the cytotoxicity of MTAC-rGO nanosheets was very low. Results suggest that MTAC-rGO/EVOH film may have great potential in food active packaging.