Evaluation of Banana Pseudostem Fibres for Packaging Material Development

Abstract

The present study investigated composites prepared from banana pseudostem fibres (BF) and gum arabic (GA), in different formulations (0, 5, 10, 15, 20, 25 and 30 wt% GA), as an innovative material for fruit packaging. Experimentally, the fibres were extracted using a thermomechanical method to produce pulp, which was then hot-pressed with GA to form composite boards with an average grammage of 461 g/m2. Commercial packaging made from recycled paper pulp was used as a control. Assessment of the mechanical properties of the boards indicated superior performance by the 15 and 25 wt% GA composites, with respective tensile strength values of 2.7 and 3.1 MPa compared to the control (2.5 MPa), and flexural strength of 20.6 and 3.1 MPa concerning the control (4.6 MPa). Additionally, all the formulations exhibited low deformability, particularly the 100 wt% fibre composite, which showed only 0.4% deformation compared to 3.2% for the control. These results suggest that BF exhibits low deformability and that GA contributed to fibre bonding and cohesion, increasing the tensile modulus of the composites by up to tenfold. Thermogravimetric analysis of the boards showed thermal stability below 200°C, while the water absorption test showed significant absorption, with a maximum value of 358.3% compared to 130.5% for the control. Additionally, FTIR spectroscopy indicated no chemical interaction between GA and BF in the composites. The mechanical properties of the composites were superior to those of the recycled paper pulp packaging. Therefore, the composites show potential as an alternative cushioning material that may align with circular economy principles.