a

Food Science and Technology ISSN 0101-2061

DDOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1590/1678-457X.30216

Water sorption and water permeability properties of edible film made from
potato peel waste
Siti Hajar OTHMAN1,2*, Siti Amirah Mohammad EDWAL1, Nazratul Putri RISYON1,
Roseliza Kadir BASHA1, Rosnita A. TALIB1

Abstract
The water sorption and permeability properties of edible film produced from potato peel waste was investigated under different
levels of relative humidity (23, 33, 43, 57, 75% RH) and temperatures (5, 30, 50 °C). The water sorption behaviour and isotherms
of the film were investigated by fitting water sorption data to the Peleg model and the Guggenheim, Anderson de Boer model
(GAB model). The amount of moisture content, time required for the moisture content of the film to reach equilibrium,
water sorption rate, and water sorption capacity increased when the relative humidity increased. The effect of temperature
on moisture content, water sorption rate, water sorption capacity, and monolayer moisture content is complex and related to
the water activity as well as the moisture content. Based on R2 and RMSE values, the Peleg and GAB models were respectively
determined as excellent models to predict the water sorption properties of the films, thus supporting the reliability of water
sorption behaviour prediction. The water vapour transmission rate and water vapour permeability increased with an increase
in relative humidity and temperature. The sorption and permeability properties of the film are worth investigation since the
final application of the film as food packaging is ultimately dependent on these behaviours.
Keywords: edible film; food packaging; water permeability; water sorption.
Practical Application: Edible film, food packaging material.

1 Introduction
Most of the materials used for food packaging applications application of potato peel provides benefit in combining the
are non-biodegradable such as plastic made from petroleum. barrier and mechanical properties of polysaccharides besides
Thus these products do not meet the growing demand in society the nutritious properties of the potato peel itself (Azeredo et al.,
for sustainability and they are not safe for the environment 2012). Moreover, production of edible film is also noteworthy to
(Othman, 2014). To overcome this problem there is a need to minimise potato peel waste from the food industry for example
find alternative food packaging materials and among these, in the manufacture of potato chips and fried potatoes.
edible film appears to be the most favourable alternative. This is
However, polysaccharide films exhibit a weak water vapour
because edible film is environmentally friendly whereby the film
barrier owing to their hydrophilic characteristic (Skurtys et al.,
can be consumed together with the products packaged within
2010; Slavutsky & Bertuzzi, 2016) whereby they tend to absorb
it and thus there is no food packaging to be disposed of (Shit &
moisture from the surroundings. Although many studies have
Shah, 2014). Further, edible film could reduce pollution in the
been undertaken to determine the many properties of films that
environment because the films are usually created especially
are edible (Britto & Assis, 2010; Weng et al., 2014), the studies
from ingredients that are edible and renewable, thus are able
regarding the barrier properties of the films has been limited
to disintegrate more readily than other packaging material
to date. As a promising food packaging material, knowledge
(Bourtoom, 2008). Other than being environmental friendly
of the barrier properties that include water sorption and water
(Das & Chowdhury, 2016), edible film has the ability to lengthen
permeability of the film is much needed because the final
the shelf life of foodstuffs packaged with it and to protect the
application of the films will ultimately depends on these factors.
foodstuffs from environmental effects such as moisture loss and
To function as a food packaging material, reliable sorption data
the browning effect (Robertson, 2012).
of the edible film is needed for the prediction of the food quality
Edible film is defined as a consumable thin layer that is of the packaged items. Moisture content plays a prominent role in
positioned as barrier between any food and the surrounding determining the performance of edible film as a food packaging
environment (Skurtys et al., 2010). It can be produced from material because moisture is a transferable element which can
potato peel which contains starch due to the naturally present pass through the film either by adsorption or desorption and
biopolymers which are predominantly polysaccharides (Bergo et al., may change the properties of the film and the packaged food
2008) such as pectin, starch, and cellulose derivatives. Such an product (Bourlieu et al., 2009). Thus, the shelf life of the edible

Received 18 Nov., 2016

Accepted 13 Feb., 2017
1
Department of Process and Food Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia
2
Materials Processing and Technology Laboratory, Institute of Advanced Technology, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia
*Corresponding author: s.hajar@upm.edu.my

Food Sci. Technol, Campinas, 37(Suppl. 1): 63-70, Dec. 2017 63

 Water sorption and water permeability

film as well as the food wrapped within the film is dependent 2.2 Moisture curve and rates
on the transferability of the moisture between the film and its
The edible film made from potato peel waste was cut into
surroundings. Several factors influence the amount and rate of
squares with dimensions 30 mm x 30 mm and placed inside
moisture that can transfer or diffuse, including the surrounding
a desiccator containing silica gel (0% relative humidity) for
humidity and temperature. These factors need to be controlled
five days at a constant temperature of 30 °C (Suppakul, 2006).
to ensure the efficiency of the edible film as well as the integrity
The desiccator was located inside an incubator (Incucell,
of the food product.
MMM, Germany) to ensure a constant temperature of 30 °C.
The objective of this study is to investigate the effect The desiccator acted as a humidity controller for film storage in
of two imperative factors, namely, the relative humidity the water sorption analysis including during film preparation.
(23, 33, 43, 57, 75% RH) and temperature (5, 30, 50 °C) on the A relative humidity meter (NT-312, ProsKit, USA) was used
water sorption and water permeability properties of edible film to ensure that the relative humidity inside the desiccator was
made from potato peel waste. Water sorption data was fitted constant. The weight of the film before it was placed inside the
to the Peleg model and the Guggenheim, Anderson de Boer desiccator was measured and labelled as Wi. Then, the weight of
model (GAB model) to determine the water sorption rate, the film after it was pre-dried inside the desiccator for five days
water sorption capacity, and sorption isotherms. The water was measured and labelled as Wd. The initial moisture content
vapour transmission rate and water vapour permeability were was determined as follows (Equation 1):
determined using the cup method.
M i = (Wi - Wd )/Wd (1)

2 Materials and methods

where Mi is the initial moisture content (% dry basis), Wi is
2.1 Preparation of films the initial weight of the sample (g), Wd is the dry weight of the
The potato peel waste was obtained from a food stall that sample after being pre-dried in the desiccator (g).
sells fried potato flesh in Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia. The potato The five-day pre-dried films were then placed inside separate
peel was first washed using tap water to eliminate any dirt on the desiccators with different saturated salt solutions in triplicate
potato skin and was oven dried at 45 °C for 72 hours (Farvin et al., samples for each salt solution. The saturated salt solutions used in
2012). The dried potato peel was then ground into powder and this experiment were Potassium Acetate, Magnesium Chloride,
was sieved using a 64 µm mesh sieve to obtain a fine powder Potassium Carbonate, Sodium Bromide, and Sodium Chloride
to be used in the film preparation. The powder retained in the with a relative humidity of 23, 33, 43, 57, and 75% respectively.
mesh was reground again. The water sorption properties of the potato films were studied
An amount of 5 g of potato peel powder was mixed with 100 ml at three different temperatures; 5 °C, 30 °C and 50 °C. Therefore,
of distilled water followed by the addition of 2 ml of plasticiser, the desiccators were placed separately in conditioning equipment
specifically glycerol (R&M Chemical), and 1 g of anti-browning such as a chiller (Remi, India) set at 5 °C and an incubator
agent, specifically ascorbic acid (R&M Chemical). The solution set at 30 °C and 50 °C respectively. Thermometers (Economy
mixture was then transferred to a water bath shaker where the Thermometer (Mercury), Promolab, France) were placed
temperature of the mixture solution was maintained at 90 °C inside the equipment to confirm the surrounding temperature
and shaken at 60 rpm speed for 30 minutes. Then, the mixture (equipment environment). Figure 1 shows a schematic diagram
of the equipment used for the water sorption study. The weight
solution was cooled at room temperature. The cooled mixture
gained for each sample was determined using a digital balance
solution was poured into an aluminium casting tray (484 cm2)
for the first 2 and 5 hours. After that, the weight of the film was
and covered with transparent film at the bottom of the casting
measured periodically every 24 hours for seven days.
tray. The purpose of the transparent film was to simplify the
peel‑off process of the dried film. Then, the casting tray was The moisture sorption data of the film was fitted to a
placed into a natural convection oven at 50 °C for 26 hours to mathematical model, specifically the Peleg model. The Peleg
dry the sample film. Finally, the edible film form was peeled model has been widely utilised to describe the sorption process in
off from the transparent film. The thickness of the film was various foods, especially starchy and oily food types (Turhan et al.,
measured using a hand micrometre and the average thickness 2002). The following is the equation (Equation 2) proposed by
of the film was found to be 0.10 ± 0.01 mm. Peleg (1998):

Table 1. Water sorption rate (k1), water sorption capacity (k2), and regression square (R2) obtained from water sorption data fitted to Peleg model.
Relative Temperature = 5 °C Temperature = 30 °C Temperature = 50 °C
humidity k1 k2 R2 k1 k2 R2 k1 k2 R2
23% 0.558 0.180 0.993 0.197 0.199 0.995 0.136 0.075 0.994
33% 0.388 0.113 0.996 0.154 0.140 0.999 0.136 0.076 0.998
43% 0.150 0.079 0.998 0.102 0.080 0.999 0.102 0.053 0.990
57% 0.132 0.041 0.992 0.084 0.064 0.998 0.091 0.044 0.989
75% 0.121 0.024 0.994 0.015 0.028 0.999 0.036 0.024 0.998

64 Food Sci. Technol, Campinas, 37(Suppl. 1): 63-70, Dec. 2017

 Othman et al.

M(t) = M i + t / (k1 + k2t ) (2) The root mean square error (RMSE) was measured to
determine the differences between the equilibrium moisture
where M(t) is the moisture at time t (%), Mi is the initial moisture content determined from the experimental data (Meexp) and the
(%), k1 is the Peleg rate constant, and k2 is the Peleg capacity equilibrium moisture content predicted using the GAB model
constant. By rearranging Equation 2: (Mecalc). An RMSE value of 10% and less indicates an excellent
fit using the model (Jamieson et al., 1991). The following is the
t / ( M t - M i )= k1 - k2t (3) equation (Equation 9) used to calculate the RMSE value (Mok
& Hettiarachchy, 1990):
A curve of t/(Mt-Mi) versus time was plotted to produce a
straight line with k1 (the water sorption rate) as intercept and k2 2

(water sorption capacity) as the gradient of the graph. RMSE =

∑ (M exp - M calc ) / M exp  × 100
(9)
N

2.3 Water sorption isotherm 2.4 Water vapour permeability

The water sorption isotherm was determined by fitting the The water vapour permeability of the film was studied
data using the GAB model. This model was chosen because it using the JIS Z 0208 method. A circular test cup (No. 318 Water
has been widely employed in the determination of the sorption Permeability Cup) was used to determine the water vapour
behaviour of food products (Mali et al., 2005). The data was permeability of the film. The film was first cut into a circular
fitted using the following equation (Equation 4): shape that was larger than the inner diameter of the cup. Then,
the cup was placed on a horizontal platform. Anhydrous Calcium
Me Ckaw
= (4) Chloride as a desiccant with 0% relative humidity was placed
Wm (1 - kaw )(1 - kaw + Ckaw )
inside the cup. Subsequently, the edible film made from potato
peel waste was placed on top of the permeability cup (Talja et al.,
where, Me is the equilibrium moisture content of the sample on
2007). The cup was then covered and sealed with liquid paraffin.
a dry basis (mg), Wm is the GAB monolayer moisture content,
After the liquid paraffin solidified, the cup was weighed in order
C is the Guggenheim constant, aw is the water activity (%) and k
to calculate the initial weight. The cup was then located inside
is a factor correcting the properties of the multiplayer molecules
a desiccator that contained a saturated salt solution. Three
corresponding to the bulk liquid.
types of salt solution (Magnesium Chloride, Sodium Bromide
The equilibrium moisture content was obtained when and Sodium Chloride) at different levels of relative humidity
the difference of the weight between two successive sample (33, 57, and 75%) were used. The water permeability properties of
measurements was not greater that 1% (Mali et al., 2005). the potato films were also studied at three different temperatures
The equilibrium moisture content was obtained using the at 5 °C, 30 °C and 50 °C. To achieve this the desiccators were
following equation (Equation 5): placed separately in conditioning equipment such as a chiller
set at 5 °C and incubators set at 30 °C and 50 °C respectively.
Me =
We
(M i +1) - 1 (5)
Thermometers were placed inside the equipment to confirm the
Wi surrounding temperature (equipment environment). The weight
of the cup was recorded every 24 hours until the difference in
where Me is the equilibrium moisture content (mg dry basis), Wi mass was not more than 10%. The water vapour permeability
is the initial weight of the sample (mg), Mi is the initial moisture (WVP) and water vapour transmission rate (WVTR) were
content of the product (% dry basis), and We is the equilibrium determined using the following equations (Equations 10, 11):
weight of the sample (mg).
WVTR = (∆m / ∆tA) (10)
The three parameters for the GAB model, Wm, C, and k
were determined from the second order polynomial form of WVP = WVTR( L / ∆p ) (11)
y = a w / M e = a w2 + βa w + γ where,
where ∆m/∆t is the moisture gain weight per time (g/s), A is
k the exposed surface area of the film (m2), L is the thickness
a= (6) of the film (mm), and ∆p is the difference of partial pressure
Wm [1 / C - 1]
(Jouki et al., 2013).
1
β= (7)
Wm [1 - 2 / C ] 3 Results and discussion
3.1 Moisture curve
1
γ= (8)
Wm kC Edible film made from potato peel waste was first pre-dried
for five days to remove the initial moisture inside the film. After
This model was solved using the linear regression analysis five days, the film lost an average of 7.30% moisture content
method to obtain α, β, and γ and subsequently the parameter which was designated as the initial moisture content of the film
values Wm, C and k were obtained from the substitution calculation (Mi). Figure 2a-c shows the water sorption data of the film over
method using Equations 6-8. a period of seven days (168 hours) for different levels of relative

Food Sci. Technol, Campinas, 37(Suppl. 1): 63-70, Dec. 2017 65

 Water sorption and water permeability

humidity and temperatures. The moisture content of the film the film when stored at 75% relative humidity (RH) was much
increased rapidly for the first 7 hours which indicates the early greater than the film stored at 23% RH. The time required to
stage of water sorption of the film. After around 24 hours, the reach equilibrium also increased when the relative humidity
moisture content of the edible film attained a plateau, implying increased. At 5 °C, the time required for the film stored at 23%
that the moisture content equilibrated with the relative humidity RH to equilibrate with the surroundings was around 24 hours
(Mali et al., 2005). Upon reaching equilibrium, the amount compared to around 96 hours when stored at 75% RH.
of water being adsorbed increases as the relative humidity These findings suggest that relative humidity is an imperative
increases. For example, it can be clearly seen from Figure 2a parameter that could affect both the amount of moisture content
that at a temperature of 5 °C, the amount of moisture content of and the time needed for the moisture content of the film to

Figure 1. Schematic diagram of equipment used for water sorption study.

Figure 2. Water sorption data of edible film made from potato peel waste at different levels of relative humidity (23, 33, 43, 57, 75% RH) and
temperatures of (a) 5 °C; (b) 30 °C; and (c) 50 °C.

66 Food Sci. Technol, Campinas, 37(Suppl. 1): 63-70, Dec. 2017

 Othman et al.

achieve equilibrium with the surroundings. The reason for this 3.2 Water sorption analysis using Peleg model
finding is due to the fact that when the surroundings have a
The water sorption data of the film over a period of seven
high relative humidity the air contains a large amount of water
days (168 hours) at different levels of relative humidity and
molecules that can be adsorbed by the film, thus there will be a
temperature was then fitted using the Peleg model (Equation 3).
high amount of moisture content inside the film when there is The k1, water sorption rate and the k2, water sorption capacity as
high relative humidity. Increasing the moisture content at a high well as the R2, regression value were determined from the fitted
relative humidity will cause the film to swell, opening up new curve and tabulated in Table 1. It can be clearly observed from
binding sites for water, hence increasing the equilibrium moisture the table that the R2 values are around 0.99 which indicates the
content (Chowdhury & Das, 2012). Mostafa & Sourell (2009) strong reliability of the Peleg model in describing the water
reported that the increase of equilibrium moisture content is also sorption behaviour of the edible films.
attributable to a decrease in the vapour pressure insufficiency
at high relative humidity. This produces an atmosphere near to In general k1 and k2 decreased with an increase in relative
saturation, thus increasing the capability of the film to absorb humidity. The lower the value of k1, the higher the initial
extra moisture from the atmosphere. Furthermore, at high relative water sorption rate (Peleg, 1998). The lower the value of k2,
humidity, there is a big difference of water activity between the the higher the sorption capacity of the edible film (Mali et al.,
film and the surroundings, thus, it takes more time for the water 2005). This result indicates that the water sorption rate and
sorption activity to achieve equilibrium. Hence, the time required water sorption capacity increased with an increase in relative
for the moisture content to achieve equilibrium increases with humidity which means that the film adsorbed faster and stored
increasing relative humidity. more water when kept in high relative humidity surroundings
(Mali et al., 2005). This was due to the high concentration of
Figure 2 also demonstrates the effect of temperature on water molecules in the air resulting in high kinetic energy that
the water sorption. Figure 2a-b shows that upon reaching enhanced the sorption of the water into the film. This finding
equilibrium, at constant relative humidity, the moisture appears to be supported by the previous discussion (Section 3.1)
content decreases when the temperature increases whereby the whereby the increase in relative humidity resulted in an increase
equilibrium moisture content at 30 °C was lower compared to in equilibrium moisture content.
the figure at a temperature of 5 °C. This finding appears to be
In terms of temperature, for the various levels of relative
consistent with the findings of Chowdhury & Das (2012), who
humidity in the range of 23% to 33%, k1 decreased when the
attributed an increase in temperature caused in an increase in
temperature increased from 5 °C to 50 °C. This finding is
water activity of the film, thus reducing the total number of water
consistent with the work of Turhan et al. (2002) in which the
binding sites because the temperature induced a modification
water sorption increased with an increase in temperature and
in the structure of the film. An increase in temperature will
resulted in a lower k1 value. This was due to the water-starch
result in a high energy level that causes the water molecules
reaction that related to the gelatinisation temperature of the
to become unstable, active, and escape from the binding sites,
edible film which lowered the activation energy for the rate of
which decreases the moisture content of the film (Mostafa & water to be transferred (Turhan et al., 2002). For the various
Sourell, 2009). According to Alakali & Satimehin (2009), from a levels of relative humidity in the range 43% to 75%, k1 decreased
thermodynamic point of view, an increase in temperature leads and then increased with the increase in temperature from 5 °C
to a decrease in the quantity of water adsorbed, thus lowering to 30 °C and from 30 °C to 50 °C respectively, suggesting that
the equilibrium moisture content. the water sorption rate increased from 5 °C to 30 °C and then
However, the findings from Figure 2b-c appear to contradict decreased from 30 °C to 50 °C. It can be speculated that at any
this finding. At a constant relative humidity, the moisture content particular relative humidity, a temperature increase results in
at a temperature of 50 °C is higher compared to the moisture an increase in the water sorption rate, most probably due to
content at a temperature of 30 °C. This opposite behaviour has additional new binding sites opening for water to be adsorbed.
also been observed by Chowdhury & Das (2012). According to Similarly, an increase in temperature at any particular relative
those authors, at any specific moisture content a temperature humidity can also result in a decrease of water sorption perhaps
increase results in a reduction in water activity of the film, due to a high energy level causing the water molecules to become
implying additional new binding sites for water to open, and unstable and escape from the binding sites, thus decreasing the
therefore decreasing the free energy as well as the water activity water sorption rate.
of the bound water. Thus, an increase in temperature will result In general there is a trend of k2 increasing and then decreasing
in an increase in the moisture content rather than a decrease in when the temperature increases from 5 °C to 30 °C and from
moisture content. In other words, if the temperature is high, then 30 °C to 50 °C respectively, suggesting that the water sorption
the surrounding air has a greater capacity to hold more water capacity decreased from 5 °C to 30 °C and then increased from
in a vapour state than at lower temperatures, thus resulting in 30 °C to 50 °C which contradicts the findings for the k1 values.
an increase in moisture content. Few studies have reported an Thus, it can be deduced that for edible film made from potato
increase in water binding at a high temperature for food rich in peel, the effects of temperature reveal that the relationship for
soluble solids and prone to structural orientation (Das & Das, the water sorption capacity is reciprocal to the water sorption
2002; Rizvi, 1986). It can be deduced that the relationship between rate. A slow water sorption rate offers a higher chance for the
moisture content and temperature is complex and related to the film to hold more water, hence the high water sorption capacity.
water activity as well as moisture content. This is probably due to the slow water sorption process, resulting

Food Sci. Technol, Campinas, 37(Suppl. 1): 63-70, Dec. 2017 67

 Water sorption and water permeability

in less water lost to the surroundings. These findings appear to caused by the temperature rise. Strauss et al. (1991) stated that
be consistent with the previous results (Section 3.1) in which the monolayer moisture content value is the maximum volume
the equilibrium moisture content decreased as the temperature of water in a single layer per gram of dry film that could be
increased from 5 °C to 30 °C, perhaps due to a decrease in the adsorbed. The monolayer moisture content value also indicates
k1 value and an increase in the k2 value (an increase in the water the number of sorption sites. The higher the temperature,
sorption rate and a decrease in the water sorption capacity) and the lower the monolayer moisture content and the lower the
a temperature increase from 30 °C to 50 °C perhaps due to an number of sorption sites. Hence, in high temperature and high
increase in the k1 value and a decrease in the k2 value (a decrease relative humidity storage, the lower are the chances to prevent
in water sorption rate and an increase in water sorption capacity). auto-oxidation and the higher the chances of the edible film
These findings are noteworthy to be determined since the sorption becoming unstable during storage.
behaviour of any film needs to be studied thoroughly before it Moreover, in comparison with the water sorption rate
can be used for the designated application, particularly for a findings discussed previously (Section 3.2), it is obvious that
food packaging application. the trend of the monolayer moisture is linear to the trend of
the water sorption rate whereby both the monolayer moisture
3.3 Water sorption isotherms using the GAB model content and the water sorption rate increase with a temperature
To investigate the water sorption isotherms of the film, the increase from 5 °C to 30 °C and decreased from 30 °C to 50 °C.
water sorption data of the films at different levels of relative This is consistent with the definition of monolayer moisture
content which is the maximum volume of water which can be
humidity and temperature was then fitted using the GAB model
adsorbed by a single layer per gram of dry film (Strauss et al.,
(Equation 4, aw/Me versus aw). The fitted curves resulted in
1991). Hence, the higher the water sorption rate, the higher the
a second order polynomial equation and the constant values
monolayer moisture content.
obtained from the equation were used to determine the GAB
constant parameters or moisture sorption isotherms which include From Table 2, the RMSE values for temperatures of 5, 30, and
the factor correcting properties of a multilayer molecule (k), 50 °C respectively were 1.06, 0.60, and 4.23%. These values, all of
GAB monolayer moisture content (Wm), and the Guggenheim which are less than 10%, indicate excellent fitting of the data using
constant (C) (Equations 6-8). These values including the R2 and the GAB model (Jamieson et al., 1991). This demonstrates that
RMSE values are tabulated in Table 2. the model used is reliable and good at predicting the moisture
sorption behaviour of the edible film.
According to Chukwu (2010), the monolayer moisture content
corresponds to the minimum moisture to avoid auto-oxidation
and to improve the stability of the product throughout the storage 3.4 Water vapour permeability
period and it is dependent of the technique used to equilibrate The water vapour transmission rate (WVTR) is the rate
the moisture. However, at the level of the monolayer moisture of water vapour permeating through the film. In this work,
content, there is still the possibility for some trace elements to the WVTR is determined from the slope of the regression line
be exposed, which results in a browning effect. Table 2 shows of sample weight versus time graph whereby the slope is then
that the monolayer moisture content increased from 0.065 g to divided by the area of the film being exposed to the transmission
0.090 g water per g solid with the increase in temperature from (Equation 10). Table 3 tabulates the WVTR values as well as
5 °C to 30 °C. This was probably due to the high temperature water vapour permeability values calculated from the WVTR
that has the ability to decrease the moisture content in the values (Equation 11).
surroundings. Hence a higher amount of moisture was required
to cause auto-oxidation as well as to impair the stability of the Table 3 shows that the WVTR increased with an increase in
the level of relative humidity. For example, the WVTR for the
edible film throughout the storage period.
sample stored at 5 °C increased from 14.04 to 133.51 g/day ∙ m2
On the other hand, the monolayer moisture content decreased as the relative humidity increased from 33 to 75%. This is due
from 0.090 g to 0.030 g water per g solid as the temperature to the availability of a high concentration of water molecules in
further increased from 30 °C to 50 °C. According to Akoy et al. the surroundings, thus increasing the WVTR of the edible film.
(2013), the decrease in the monolayer moisture content of the This finding appears to be consistent with the previous findings
edible film at higher temperatures is expected since the total which stated that as the WVTR increased with relative humidity,
number of active sorption sites for water binding decreases the water sorption rate, water sorption capacity, and equilibrium
owing to physical or chemical changes in the film that are moisture content also increased with relative humidity.

Table 2. GAB constant parameters for edible film at different temperatures.

Constant Temperature = 5 °C Temperature = 30 °C Temperature = 50 °C
k 1.083 0.977 1.169
Wm 0.065 0.090 0.030
C 10.618 6.316 –5.747
R2 0.996 0.997 0.963
RMSE (%) 1.06 0.60 4.23

68 Food Sci. Technol, Campinas, 37(Suppl. 1): 63-70, Dec. 2017

 Othman et al.

Table 3. The slope of the linear regression line of the sample weight vs time graph, the WVTR, and water vapour permeability of the film for
different levels of relative humidity and temperature.
Slope, ∆W/∆t WVTR Water Vapour Permeability
Relative (g/day) ((g/day)/m2) (g.mm/(m2.day.mmHg))
Humidity
5 °C 30 °C 50 °C 5 °C 30 °C 50 °C 5 °C 30 °C 50 °C
33% 0.040 0.230 0.213 14.04 81.49 75.26 0.046 0.268 0.247
57% 0.217 0.320 0.373 76.82 113.36 131.96 0.146 0.216 0.251
75% 0.378 0.465 0.496 133.51 164.57 175.53 0.193 0.238 0.254

In general, the WVTR also increased with an increase in References

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their study stated that an increase in temperature involves an upm.edu.my/20%20(02)%202013/52%20IFRJ%2020%20(02)%20
increase in the water vapour transmission rates. This is due 2013%20Elamin.pdf.
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