Improvement of Hydrophobicity and Gas Permeability of the Polyvinyl Alcohol Film Utilizing Monoglyceride Coating and Diatomaceous Earth Filling and Its Application to Fresh-Cut Mango

The widespread utilization of the polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) film is significantly hindered by two prominent limitations: water sensitivity and low gas permeability. In this work, a novel PVA film coated with monoglyceride (MG) and filled with diatomaceous earth (DS) was fabricated to address these issues. Scanning electron microscopy and 3D morphology revealed that the R a value improved from 3.72 to 7.21 μm. Also, the successful coating of MG was confirmed by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. Pull-off adhesion tests proved that the film containing 0.5 g of MG exhibited the highest adhesive properties. The PVA/MG/DS film had the highest contact angle of 122.32°, the lowest water vapor permeability of 7.19 g/m2/day, and the lowest oxygen permeability of 55.35 (cm3 × cm × cm2 × s × Pa)−1. Moreover, this type of film exhibited higher light transmittance, better thermal stability, and greater mechanical properties than pure PVA film. Consequently, the PVA/MG/DS film displayed superior performance in preserving the freshness and quality of fresh-cut mango, with a lowest weight loss of 4.48%, a lowest total soluble solids of 7.98%, a greatest titratable acidity of 0.88%, a highest ascorbic acid of 76.67 mg/100 g, and best sensory quality.