Effect of cellulose fiber loading on the properties of starch-based films

Abstract

Sago starch is a seasonal based plantation and widely found in Asia country. Its application mainly in cooking such as biscuits and as a thickener in jellies. To further utilize its application, bioplastic from sago starch was developed. Due to its highly hydrophilic characteristic and poor mechanical properties, the addition of cellulose fibers extracted from sago waste was studied and presented in this paper. The films were prepared by solution casting and their characterizations were carried out in term of tensile properties, X-ray diffractograms, thermogravimetric analysis, wettability and water absorption behavior. The incorporation of cellulose fibers has successfully increased the properties of the sago starch films. The tensile strength and Young's modulus increased significantly with the increase of cellulose fibers content while the elongation decreased. Thermal stability improved with the introduction of cellulose fibers. XRD patterns confirm the presence of cellulose fibers in sago starch film.