Functional Nanofibers for Active Packaging: Elenolic Acid‐Loaded Chitosan/<scp>PEO</scp> Blends

ABSTRACT The aim of this study is to create electrospun nanofibers based on chitosan/PEO (polyethylene oxide) and elenolic acid and to characterize them as active film materials. Elenolic acid was incorporated into the chitosan/PEO polymer matrix at varying concentrations (0%, 1%, 2%, and 5%), and its effects on solution properties such as conductivity and viscosity were investigated. The morphological structure of the nanofibers was assessed using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), showing an unimodal size distribution for all samples except the one with the highest elenolic acid concentration (E_5). Additionally, water vapor permeability (WVP) and thermal properties of the films were evaluated. The WVP of the fibrous films ranged between 7.086 ± 0.569 and 2.340 ± 0.259 × 10 −10 g −1 s −1 Pa −1 , with elenolic acid incorporation reducing the films' permeability. The onset degradation temperature of the samples decreased by 100°C with the addition of elenolic acid. FTIR results confirmed successful encapsulation of elenolic acid. The films' antioxidant activity and total phenolic content were also measured and 5% elenolic acid‐loaded nanofibers showed strong antioxidant activity (almost 92%) with total phenolic content as 25.92 ± 1.17 (mg GAE/g film). Furthermore, the antimicrobial activity of the fibrous films was tested against common foodborne pathogens, including E . coli ( G− ) and S . aureus ( G+ ). Films containing 2% and 5% elenolic acid exhibited inhibitory effects (inhibition zone between 13.5 and 18.5 mm) between both microorganisms.