Rice Starch-Based Biodegradable Films: Properties Enhancement

The claims of environmental protection and the lack of petroleum resources provide a new opportunity for developing plastic materials derived from biopolymer resources. Starch is one of the most studied and promising raw materials for the production of biodegradable plastics, because starch is quite cheap, abundant, biodegradable and edible. Starch consists of two major types of molecules, primarily linear amylose and highly branched amylopectin. Normal starch consists of about 75% amylopectin and 25% amylose; waxy starches consist of mainly amylopectin and 0–8% amylose; and high-amylose starches consist of 40–70% amylose. Amylose is composing of D-glucose molecules, which are linked in a α-1, 4 conformation. The glucose monomers therefore form a linear straight chain polymer. Amylose is the key component involved in water absorption, swelling and gelation of starch in food and processing of material (Hoseney, 1986).