Mechanical Properties and Water Vapour Transmission Rate of Sago Starch Based Edible Film with Palm Oil and Sorbitol as additives

Edible film is a thin layer made of materials that can be consumed and used to package food products. A good edible film has a high tensile strength and low water vapour transmission rate, so the edible film is able to protect food from mechanical interference and improve food durability. This research aimed to improve the mechanical properties and edible film water vapour transmission rate of sago starch based edible film using with palm oil and glycerol plasticizer. The addition of Gambier as an anti-microbial by adjusting the pH of the starch suspension using musk oranges. The process of synthesizing edible films consists of mixing all materials, forming gels, printing and drying. Observations made was included mechanical properties and edible film water vapour transmission rate. The results showed that the tensile strength tests obtained were in the range of 22.95 – 37.46 MPa, while the elongation percentages obtained were 313% - 484%. The tensile strength and elongation percentage obtained is above minimum value set by Japanese International Standard (JIS) for bioplastic (3.923 Mpa and 70%). The water vapour transmission rate obtained was 1.34 - 3.42 g/m2 /day. The lower value of water vapour transmission rate, the better edible film resists the water, hence the better quality of the edible film serves as food packaging.