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Water vapor adsorption equilibria and mass transport in unmodified and modified cellulose fiber-based materials

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Abstract

Water vapor adsorption isotherms of different unmodified and coated paper samples were studied to determine their suitability as water barrier packaging materials. The sorption behavior of these samples was compared with commercially available paper. The experimental data were analyzed using the Hailwood–Horrobin (H–H), Guggenheim–Anderson–De Boer (GAB) and BET models for extraction of isotherm parameters and determination of monolayer moisture contents. The H–H and GAB models were found to provide good fits to the experimental data. The monolayer moisture content of modified papers was less than 3.0 % (dry basis) as compared to unmodified paper samples (4.20 %), at saturation. It was also observed that the sorption behavior of modified paper samples differed with substrate type. Water vapor permeability (WVP) of unmodified and coated paper samples at the temperatures of 25 and 38 °C were also measured for a wide range of vapor partial pressure gradients. The permeabilities of the modified samples were found to be generally low compared to the unmodified (reference) paper sample. Among the investigated samples, PLA and PHBV coated paper samples showed higher mass transfer resistance to water vapor transport. Furthermore, the water vapor permeabilities of different samples were found to be relatively constant up to the modest relative humidity levels; however, at the higher humidity levels they showed increasing trend with the further increase in relative humidity. Results of this study confirmed that blocking of active surface sites by coating with PLA and PHBV is the most effective way to increase the water vapor barrier properties of modified papers, thus making them the appropriate candidates for green-based food packaging materials.

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Acknowledgments

The authors gratefully acknowledge financial support from Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) Strategic Green Fiber Network program. We also thank Dr. Xiao’s graduate students, Mr. Madjid Farmahini-Farahani and Ms. Zhaoping Song for preparation of the samples in the UNB Limerick pulp and paper laboratory. Last but not least, our thanks are due to Mr. Nikola Mijatovic, the summer student, who was assisting us in the experimental work during the course of this project.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Chemical Engineering, University of New Brunswick, Fredericton, NB, E3B 5A3, Canada

    Alemayehu H. Bedane, Huining Xiao & Mladen Eić

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  1. Alemayehu H. Bedane
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  2. Huining Xiao
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  3. Mladen Eić
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Correspondence to Mladen Eić.

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Bedane, A.H., Xiao, H. & Eić, M. Water vapor adsorption equilibria and mass transport in unmodified and modified cellulose fiber-based materials. Adsorption 20, 863–874 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10450-014-9628-6

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