ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Nutr.
Sec. Nutrition and Food Science Technology
Preparation and properties of chitosan/zein-Perilla Essential Oil Composite Film: Its structure, physicochemical characterization, and antioxidant properties
Zhiyi You 1
Chao Ai 2
Shiqi Wen 2
Yongmei Su 1
Junping Xu 1
1. Lingnan Normal University, Zhanjiang, China
2. Guangdong Ocean University, Zhanjiang, China
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Abstract
This study used chitosan and zein as film-forming matrices and added perilla essential oil (PEsO) to prepare a new type of fresh-keeping film. The morphology, structure and properties of the composite film were analyzed through scanning electron microscopy (SEM), infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), hydrophilicity/hydrophobicity and antioxidant tests. Compared with chitosan/zein film, films loaded with PEsO exhibited a significant increase in barrier capacity, thermal stability and antioxidant ability. SEM analysis showed that after the addition of PEsO, micropores and particles were formed on the film surface, which affected the mechanical properties of the film and decreased the tensile strength and elongation at break of the film. FTIR indicated that there are inter-molecular interactions between PEsO, chitosan, and zein. Thermo-gravimetric analysis showed that PEsO delayed the thermal decomposition of the film and improved its thermal stability. Overall, the addition of PEsO enabled to improve the optical properties, barrier properties, thermal stability and antioxidant properties of the chitosan/zein film, and the composite film could be a good candidate for food packaging material especially applied for high-fat and easily oxidized foods.
Summary
Keywords
Antioxidant ability, Chitosan, Food packing, Perilla essential oil, Zein
Received
06 November 2025
Accepted
19 February 2026
Copyright
© 2026 You, Ai, Wen, Su and Xu. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
*Correspondence: Junping Xu
Disclaimer
All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.