In situ synthesis of HKUST-1 on copper-ammonia fiber for preparation of quaternary-ammonium chitosan based active packaging with sustained-release cinnamaldehyde

Yuyan Shi; Yongfu Deng; Guangwu Du; Lihua Fu; Bai Huang; Chuanhui Xu; Baofeng Lin

doi:10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2025.140342

In situ synthesis of HKUST-1 on copper-ammonia fiber for preparation of quaternary-ammonium chitosan based active packaging with sustained-release cinnamaldehyde

Int J Biol Macromol. 2025 Jan 25:300:140342. doi: 10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2025.140342. Online ahead of print.

Authors

Yuyan Shi¹, Yongfu Deng¹, Guangwu Du¹, Lihua Fu¹, Bai Huang¹, Chuanhui Xu¹, Baofeng Lin²

Affiliations

¹ School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Guangxi University, 100 East University Road, Nanning 530004, PR China.
² School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Guangxi University, 100 East University Road, Nanning 530004, PR China. Electronic address: lbf@gxu.edu.cn.

PMID: 39870284
DOI: 10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2025.140342

Abstract

Cinnamaldehyde (CIN) is gaining interest as a highly effective natural antimicrobial agent to extend the shelf life of fruits. However, its inherent instability limits further applications. In this work, a new strategy for the synthesis of HKUST-1 to encapsulate CINs by in situ growth method using copper-ammonia fiber as precursors is proposed. Subsequently, combining it with chitosan quaternary ammonium salt (CQAS) to formulate chitosan quaternary ammonium salt/copper-ammonia fiber@HKUST-1/cinnamaldehyde (CCAHC) packaging film. Based on copper-ammonia fiber to prepared HKUST-1, on the one hand, it has excellent compatibility with CQAS and improves the mechanical properties of the film. On the other hand, its porous structure also encapsulates CIN and significantly improves the stability of CIN (203h). Benefiting from the sustained release of CIN and Cu²⁺ from HKUST-1, CCAHC film not only exhibited long-lasting antimicrobial activity (12 days, 95 %), which was effective in prolonging the shelf life of strawberries, but also excellent antioxidant properties (20 h, 84 %), which maintained the good appearance of fresh-cut apples (over 14 h). Moreover, CCAHC films exhibited the great degradability in the soli, which promised it becoming a green packaging material. Therefore, this work provides an innovative method for designing CIN encapsulation and preparing bioactive packaging films.

Keywords: Carrier; Cinnamaldehyde; Copper-ammonia fiber@HKUST-1.