Plasticized Mechanical Recycled PLA Films Reinforced with Microbial Cellulose Particles Obtained from Kombucha Fermented in Yerba Mate Waste

[EN] In this study, yerba mate waste (YMW) was used to produce a kombucha beverage, and the obtained microbial cellulose produced as a byproduct (KMW) was used to reinforce a mechanically recycled poly(lactic acid) (r¿PLA) matrix. Microbial cellulosic particles were also produced in pristine yerba mate for comparison (KMN). To simulate the revalorization of the industrial PLA products rejected during the production line, PLA was subjected to three extrusion cycles, and the resultant pellets (r3¿PLA) were then plasticized with 15 wt.% of acetyl tributyl citrate ester (ATBC) to obtain optically transparent and flexible films by the solvent casting method. The plasticized r3¿PLA¿ATBC matrix was then loaded with KMW and KMN in 1 and 3 wt.%. The use of plasticizer allowed a good dispersion of microbial cellulose particles into the r3¿PLA matrix, allowing us to obtain flexible and transparent films which showed good structural and mechanical performance. Additionally, the obtained films showed antioxidant properties, as was proven by release analyses conducted in direct contact with a fatty food simulant. The results suggest the potential interest of these recycled and biobased materials, which are obtained from the revalorization of food waste, for their industrial application in food packaging and agricultural films. This research was funded by the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation (MICINN) through PID-AEI project (grants PID2020-116496RB-C22 and PID2021-123753NA-C32) and TED- AEI project (grants TED2021-129920A-C43 and TED2021-131762A-I00) funded by MCIN/AEI/10.13039/501100011033 and by ERDF A way of making Europe by the European Union . It was also funded by Comunidad de Madrid-CAM ( Ayudas de Estímulo a la Investigación de Jóvenes Doctores de la Universidad Politécnica de Madrid , APOYO-JOVENES-21-VUI9G6-56- I7GABQ), Generalitat Valenciana-GVA grant numbers AICO/2021/025 and CIGE/2021/094 and National University of Quilmes (UNQ, Argentina) through the R&D program (Expediente 1300/19). Ph.D. Ángel Agüero and Ph.D. Diego Lascano acknowledge the Margarita Salas postdoctoral grants from the Ministerio de Universidades, Spain, funded by the European Union Next Generation EU. Agüero, Á.; Corral Perianes, E.; Abarca De Las Muelas, SS.; Lascano-Aimacaña, DS.; García-Soto, MDMDLF.; Peltzer, MA.; Balart, R... (2023). Plasticized Mechanical Recycled PLA Films Reinforced with Microbial Cellulose Particles Obtained from Kombucha Fermented in Yerba Mate Waste. P