Manufacture of Hydrophobic Nanocomposite Films with High Printability

The waste disposal and air pollution generated by the manufacture of petrochemical-based plastic films and traditional films call for developing a green preparation method of hydrophobic nanocomposite films. In this work, we prepared hydrophobic nanocomposite films based on nanocrystalline cellulose, guar gum, and alkenyl succinic anhydride (ASA) without using organic solvent in hydrophobic modification. The preparation of hydrophobic nanocomposite films was fast, facile, large-scale, and environmentally-friendly. The chemical structures of nanocomposite films were characterized by the Fourier-transform infrared spectrum, X-ray photoelectron spectrum, and solid-state ¹³C nuclear magnetic resonance. The effect of ASA on the surface property, water resistance property, barrier property, mechanical property, and optical property of nanocomposite films was studied. Using the ink line method and color laser printing, we compared the printability of hydrophobic nanocomposite films, commercially available cellophane, and oil-based films. The water contact angle increased from 72.86° to 101.63° as the contents of ASA increased from 0 to 800 ppm. Hydrophobic nanocomposite films showed low gas transmission, high mechanical property, good optical property, and good printability, which have a promising potential for packaging application.