Nuur Faridatun Hasanah, Leonanda Ghias Revianashar, Dadang Suhendar, Kharis Yohan Abidin, Molina Indah Pradiva
The use of plastic-based personal protective equipment (PPE) has become a worldwide issue of concern today as the need for and supply of PPE for healthcare workers has gradually increased.A possible solution to tackle this problem of plastic PPE waste is through the use of biodegradable plastic.This study aimed to investigate the potential of biodegradable bioplastics production through the combination of Polylactic acid, ZnO, and palm wax.The resulting bioplastic was coated with chitosan to improve its antibacterial properties.The study focused on the difference between various concentrations of chitosan crosslinked with 1% (v/v) glutaraldehyde, which was coated on the surface of 5% (w/v) PLA, 10% ZnO (w/w of PLA), and 2.5% palm wax (w/w of PLA). The resulting bioplastics were evaluated for mechanical properties, characterization, antibacterial properties, biodegradability and water vapor permeability.The incorporation of chitosan enhanced the tensile strength but reduced the elongation of the bioplastic. FTIR and SEM test showed that the overall chemical structure of the bioplastic was modified due to the coating treatment.The antibacterial test indicated that the bioplastics had greater antibacterial properties toward E. coli than S. aureus. Moreover, the biodegradability test demonstrated that the coating treatment increase the biodegradability rate and it effectively inhibited water vapor permeability. © 2023 National Research and Innovation Agency Republic of Indonesia.
Research Center for Process and Manufacturing Industry Technology, National Research and Innovation Agency, South Tangerang, Indonesia; Department of Agricultural Technology, Faculty of Agricultural Technology, Brawijaya University, Malang, Indonesia; Research Center for Applied Microbiology, National Research and Innovation Agency, South Tangerang, Indonesia; Research Center for Biomass and Bioproduct, National Research and Innovation Agency, South Tangerang, Indonesia; Research Center for Agroindustry, National Research and Innovation Agency, South Tangerang, Indonesia