Production of Carboxymethyl Cellulose Films Incorporating Rue (Ruta graveolens) Essential Oil

Carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC) is considered a non-toxic, biodegradable and biocompatible polymer. CMC-based films are rated as flexible, clear, odorless, moderately tear resistant, resistant to oil and grease migration, and water soluble. Due to its hydrophilicity, CMC can serve as matrix to encapsulate hydrophobic substances, like essential oils, by emulsion dispersions. The essential oil of rue (Ruta graveolens) has antifungal, antimicrobial, insecticide and therapeutic properties already reported in the literature. For the incorporation of rue essential oil in the CMC films, the ultrasound-assisted emulsion technique was used. The films were produced by casting evaporation. The rue essential oil emulsion and CMC polymeric films with the incorporation of emulsified essential oil were evaluated according to the emulsion droplet size, chemical composition, morphology and thermogravimetric profile. The droplet size obtained for the emulsion was 229.1 nm. The films showed good transparency, regularity and chemical characteristics similar to those of the pure polymer.