Physical, mechanical, thermal and structural characteristics of nanoencapsulated vitamin E loaded carboxymethyl cellulose films

Nanoencapsulated vitamin E (α-tocopherol) incorporated into the carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC) films using film-forming cast solution method. Then, some physical, mechanical, thermal and structural attributes of the active films were scrutinized. From the obtained results, addition of α-tocopherol nanocapsules significantly (p < 0.05) decreased the water vapour permeability (WVP), tensile strength (TS) and Young's modulus, while elongation at break (EAB) significantly (p < 0.05) increased. Morphology of CMC films revealed that nanocapsules cause porosity and changes in film matrix structure. The DSC (differential scanning calorimetry) patterns exhibited a drop in melting points of the film composites as a result of α-tocopherol addition. The FTIR (Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy) spectra confirmed the successful loading of α-tocopherol into the structure of CMC films, due to the formation of carbonyl group (C[dbnd]O) via phenol part of α-tocopherol at 1710 cm⁻¹ within the CMC film. α-tocopherol loaded CMC composite films could be proposed for sheltering food items containing lipids or fats which stored at the ambient temperature.