Development of biodegradable foam from cellulosic hemicellulosic, and lignin fractions from durian skin fibre (DSF) and its application

Durian skin is a by-product of durian fruit consumption. One-third of durian fruit is edible; however, the seeds and skin are discarded. This durian skin waste can be valorised into value-added products, namely cellulosic and hemicellulosic fractions, as a reinforcement material. By alkaline extraction, cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin were extracted from durian skin fibre. Subsequently, these fractions were applied to the biocomposite biodegradable foam formulation and used in vegetable packaging. This study aimed to utilise the fibre obtained from durian skin and characterise biodegradable foam reinforced by fractions extracted from durian skin fibre (DSF) and determine its suitability for food packaging. This study used thermopressing to generate biodegradable food trays from corn starch with additional extracted fractions (cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin) from durian skin. The effect of several formulations of extracted fractions from durian skin on bio-foam properties was investigated. Durian skins were dried and milled to obtain powder durian skin. Two types of powder, namely rough and fine powder durian skin, with moisture content ranging from 6.83- 8.17%(w/w). The composition of the rough durian powder were 55.28% of cellulosic fraction, 11.27% of hemicellulosic fraction, and 1.08% of lignin fraction. Additionally, the fine durian powder consists 30.78% of cellulosic fraction, 22.53% of hemicellulosic fraction, and 19.05% of lignin. All trays presented thicknesses between 3 and 4.15 mm, density between 0.16 and 0.64 g cm-3, and moisture content between 1.47 and 6.66% (dry basis). The addition of cellulose and hemicellulose fractions significantly affected the trays' physical and mechanical properties. All trays exhibited colour and structural changes during application storage for seven days at 25 oC. The formulation presenting the best properties contained 2% of hemicellulose and maximal tensile strength.