Food aroma mass transport in metallocene ethylene-based copolymers for packaging applications

• Published in: Journal of agricultural and food chemistry Vol. 46; no. 12; pp. 5236 - 5243
• Main Authors: Hernandez-Munoz, P, Catala, R, Hernandez, R.J, Gavara, R
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: 1998
• Subjects: aroma permeability; boiling point; crystallinity; cured meats; dielectric constant; diffusivity; dry-cured meat products; food packaging materials; ham; iberian ham; mass transfer; melting point; molecular weight; odors; organic compounds; oxygen permeability; packaging materials; permeability; permeability coefficients; physicochemical properties; polyethylene film; polymers; solubility; solubility coefficients; volatile compounds
• ISSN: 0021-8561; 1520-5118

The permeation of five volatile organic compounds found in Iberian ham aroma (n-hexanal, n-hexanol, n-decane, ethyl caproate, and d-limonene) through films of ultra-low-density polyethylene (ULDPE) and two metallocene copolymers was evaluated at 23 degrees C. Values of the diffusion, permeability, and solubility coefficients were determined. The polymer films were characterized by differential scanning calorimetry, size exclusion chromatography, and oxygen permeability. Compared to ULDPE, the metallocene copolymers were lower in molecular weight, showed narrower molecular weight distributions, presented less crystallinity, and offered greater oxygen permeability. Solubility coefficient values were lower for compounds having higher polarity, and diffusion coefficients were higher for compounds of smaller molecular size. The permeability coefficients, which combine the effects of diffusion and sorption contributions, indicated that the films were more permeable to nonpolar small-size aromas. Overall, metallocene copolymers showed higher permeability values than ULDPE.