Use of electro blown spinning technique in the production of polylactic acid-based nanofibers enriched with essential oils from spice mixtures

Innovative packaging technologies have gained importance in increasing the shelf life of foods and reducing spoilage. Considering environmental issues, nanotechnology plays a significant role in the development of biodegradable packaging materials. For the developed packaging material to be used in the industry, its production must be easy and economical. Electrospinning, a new method in nanofiber production, combines the advantage of obtaining thinner fibers compared to other production systems with the high production efficiency of the blowing method in a single setup. This study aims to investigate the production and characterization of nanofibers containing polylactic acid (PLA) with spice essential oil additives using the electrospinning method. Essential oils obtained from a spice mixture consisting of red pepper, black pepper, and cumin were used with a Clavenger apparatus. Essential oil was added to PLA solution at ratios of 20%, 25%, 30%, and 35% based on the PLA amount to produce nanofibers. The average fiber diameters of nanofibers containing only PLA and those with essential oil additives were measured to analyze the morphological characteristics of nanofibers. The morphological properties of the produced nanofibers were examined using SEM (Scanning Electron Microscope), and it was determined that both samples containing essential oil and those without showed homogeneous distribution, no aggregation on the surfaces, and smooth surfaces. It was observed that the essential oil was homogeneously distributed within the nanofibers containing PLA. It was determined that both PLA-containing and essential oil-added nanofibers exhibited endothermic characteristics. The glass transition temperature of PLA-containing nanofibers was higher than that of essential oil-added nanofibers, with no significant difference in crystallization characteristics, indicating that the essential oil formed an amorphous structure with PLA-containing nanofibers. The average fiber diameter of nanofibers containing essential oil ranged from 256 to 394 nm. Glass transition, crystallization, and melting temperatures were measured by DSC for thermal analysis of nanofibers. It was found that as the concentration of essential oil increased, the crystallization temperature decreased. According to the results of this study, it was observed that the spice essential oil dispersed well in the PLA-containing nanofiber structure and enhanced antioxidant capacity.