Desarrollo de películas a base de celulosa extraída de tallos de rosas
con potencialidades para la conservación de alimentos
J. Food Sci. Gastron. (January - June 2025) 3(1): 16-21
https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.14610531
ISSN: 3073-1283
ORIGINAL ARTICLE
Development of cellulose-based films from rose stems
with potential for food preservation
Augusta Jiménez-Sánchez
dolores.jimenezs@ug.edu.ec
Facultad de Ingeniería Química, Universidad de Guayaquil, Ecuador.
Received: 3 September 2024 / Accepted: 12 December 2024 / Published online: 31 January 2025
© The Author(s) 2025
Augusta Jiménez-Sánchez
·
Hillary Cabezas-Rodríguez
·
Romina Acurio-Rocafuerte
Abstract Flower production in Ecuador generates a large
amount of waste stems. This study aimed to develop bio-
plastics from rose stems using polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) and
corn starch to minimize the use of plastic bags. Cellulose
microbers were obtained through acid and basic hydrolysis
and then used to produce bioplastics through a wet method.
Mixtures of cellulose-PVA and cellulose-starch were made,
resulting in 24 formulations. The lms were evaluated for
moisture, opacity, thickness, water vapor permeability, and
degradability. The raw material contained 48.45% cellu-
lose, 60.64% moisture, 28.28% lignin, and 3.63% ash. The
thickness of the bioplastics met the specied standard. The
PVA-based bioplastics showed higher water absorption and
greater degradability, while the starch-based bioplastics were
more opaque than the others. The formulation for producing
bags would depend on the intended application.
Keywords biolms, cellulose, polyvinyl alcohol, corn
starch, characterization.
Resumen La producción de ores en Ecuador genera una
gran cantidad de desechos, especícamente los tallos. El
objetivo del presente trabajo fue desarrollar biopelículas a
partir de tallos de rosas con alcohol polivinílico (PVA) y al-
midón de maíz como envases para minimizar el uso de las
fundas plásticas. Los microlamentos de celulosa se obtu-
vieron mediante hidrólisis ácida y básica, con los cuales se
produjeron las biopelículas mediante el método húmedo. Se
realizaron mezclas de celulosa-PVA y celulosa-almidón, con
un total de 24 formulaciones. A las películas se le evaluó
la humedad, opacidad, espesor, permeabilidad al vapor de
agua y degradabilidad. La materia prima presentó 48,45 %
de celulosa, 60,64 % de humedad, 28,28 % de lignina y 3,63
% de ceniza. El espesor de las biopelículas cumplió con lo
establecido en la norma. Las biopelículas compuestas por
PVA presentaron mayor absorción de agua y mayor degrada-
bilidad, mientras que las compuestas de almidón mostraron
mayor opacidad. La formulación a utilizar para la obtención
de fundas dependería de la aplicación en la que se utilizaría.
Palabras clave biopelículas, celulosa, alcohol polivinílico,
almidón de maíz, caracterización.
How to cite
Jiménez-Sánchez, A., Cabezas-Rodríguez, H., & Acurio-Rocafuerte, R. (2025). Development of cellulose-based lms from rose stems with potential for food
preservation. Journal of Food Science and Gastronomy, 3(1), 16-21. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.14610531
J. Food Sci. Gastron. (January - June 2025) 3(1): 16-2117
Introduction
The oricultural activity in Ecuador began 30 years ago
(Sozoranga & Vélez, 2016) and has become one of the
country’s main agricultural products, alongside bananas
and cocoa. The oriculture sector ranks third globally as an
exporter (Camino-Mogro et al., 2016). The rose is the most
produced ower, with an area of 4,282 hectares in annual
production, of which 935 hectares are open-eld crops, and
the rest are greenhouse crops. The primary residue generated
is the stems, with an annual production of 2,557,870,384 cut
stems (ESPAC, 2020). These residues can be transformed
into a solution for environmental pollutants if converted into
value-added products.
In Ecuador, petroleum and non-petroleum income sources
are key to the country’s economy. The main non-petroleum
exports are cocoa, bananas, shrimp, and owers, contrib-
uting to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) (Freire et al.,
2018). The increase in production costs and the economic
crisis caused by the depreciation of international markets af-
fected the sector (Poveda, 2021). The COVID-19 pandemic
in 2020 impacted various areas, including oriculture, due
to a mandatory reduction in exports (Morocho et al., 2021).
Regarding plastic management, they have a complex re-
cycling process. In Ecuador, approximately 261,778 tons of
soft plastic waste are generated (López & Miranda, 2024).
Many of these plastics end up as pollution in landlls, high-
lighting the need for alternative solutions. One option is
biodegradable plastics based on polymers, such as cellulose
combined with polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) and starch, which
the environment can absorb as they break down into CO
2
,
water, or biomass (Avellán et al., 2020).
Conventional plastics derived from petroleum do not de-
grade quickly in the environment, thus contributing to envi-
ronmental pollution (Ponce & Zambrano, 2019). This article
addresses the need to reduce plastic and ower waste pol-
lution. This research aimed to develop biodegradable lms
from rose stems with potential applications for food preser-
vation.
Materials and methods
The stems generated at the Guayaquil Flower Market were
quantied weekly for 15 days, classifying them according to
the leading sales. The rose stems’ moisture content, ash, cel-
lulose, and lignin were determined. Cellulose extraction was
carried out through alkaline and acidic hydrolysis, following
the procedures of Jiménez et al. (2019).
The bioplastic was prepared using the molding method,
with 24 formulations and a two-factor design, to determine
the eectiveness of the mixtures. To characterize the bio-
lms, the thickness, water vapor permeability, opacity, water
absorption, water contact angle, and biodegradability were
evaluated (Kwok & Neumann, 1999; Vicentini, 2003; Joaqui
& Villada, 2013).
The biodegradability percentage of the biolms was de-
termined through a humus degradation experiment, in which
external factors such as pH and humidity were controlled.
Then, the loss due to degradation was calculated.
Results and discussion
Table 1 shows the results of the characterization of rose
stems. During the raw material’s collection and storage
phases, moisture loss occurred, leading to the concentration
of lignocellulosic components, which may explain the dier-
ences between the results and the reference values.
Table 1. Composition of rose stems
Indicator Percentage Reference
Moisture 60.64 65.3 % (González et al., 2016)
Ash 3.63 3.45 % (Rincón, 2020)
Cellulose 48.45 45-50 % (González et al., 2016)
Lignin 28.28 20-25 % (González et al., 2016)
The bioplastics composed of 10 µm cellulose and PVA
were softer, more manageable, and translucent than the cel-
lulose-starch formulations. The lms with 200 µm cellulose
were discarded due to their paper-like characteristics. Ac-
cording to the INEN 2636 standard (2012), all formulations
met the thickness requirement (0.25 mm). The formulations
with the thinnest thickness were the cellulose-PVA lms,
while the thickest were the cellulose-starch lms.
As seen in Figure 1, the bioplastics with 10 µm cellulose
and starch, at concentrations of 20 and 60 mL, showed sim-
ilar moisture content. In the case of the bioplastics with 200
µm, the moisture was similar for the 10 and 20 mL concen-
trations. Both treatments exhibited similar behavior regard-
less of concentration and thickness.
J. Food Sci. Gastron. (January - June 2025) 3(1): 16-21 18
The PVA content aected the water vapor permeability of the cellulose-PVA bioplastics. As shown in Figure 2, the mean
water vapor permeability of the bioplastics composed of cellulose and starch at 10 and 200 µm showed similarities; the vari-
ation in volumes did not aect this property.
Figure 1. Moisture of 10 and 200 µm cellulose and starch bioplastics. The error bars represent the condence interval of the
mean (95% condence). The pooled standard deviation was used to calculate the intervals.
Figure 2. Water vapor permeability of cellulose and starch bioplastics at 10 and 200 µm. The error bars represent the con-
dence interval of the mean (95% condence). The pooled standard deviation was used to calculate the intervals.
The PVA and cellulose content and their combination aected water absorption in cellulose-PVA bioplastics. Dierent be-
haviors were observed for the cellulose and starch bioplastics of 10 and 200 µm, as shown in Figure 3.
Figure 3. Mean water absorption of 10 and 200 µm cellulose and starch bioplastics. The error bars represent the condence
interval of the mean (95% condence). The pooled standard deviation was used to calculate the intervals.
J. Food Sci. Gastron. (January - June 2025) 3(1): 16-2119
The content of PVA and cellulose and their combination aected the water contact angle of the cellulose and starch bioplas-
tics. Figure 4 shows signicant dierences in the water contact angles of the 10 and 200 µm cellulose and starch bioplastics
about the amount of cellulose.
Figure 4. Water contact angle of cellulose and starch bioplastics a) 10 µm and b) 200 µm. The error bars represent the con-
dence interval of the mean (95% condence). The pooled standard deviation was used to calculate the intervals.
The factors that aected the opacity of the cellulose-PVA bioplastics were the PVA content and the combination of PVA and
cellulose. Figure 5 shows the dierences in opacity of the 10 and 200 µm cellulose and starch bioplastics. Among the 10 µm
thick lms, those containing 60 mL of cellulose showed higher opacity, while for the 200 µm lms, those with 15 and 20 mL
of cellulose exhibited higher opacity.
Figure 5. Opacity of cellulose and starch bioplastics: a) 10 µm and b) 200 µm. The error bars represent the condence inter-
val of the mean (95% condence). The pooled standard deviation was used to calculate the intervals.
J. Food Sci. Gastron. (January - June 2025) 3(1): 16-21 20
During the biodegradability study, the bioplastics gained weight in the rst three weeks, related to their water absorption
property. After this period, a progressive weight loss was observed (Figure 6).
Figure 6. Biodegradability of the bioplastics.
Conclusions
The lignocellulosic content of the stems allows them to
produce biopolymers. The formulations with corn starch
showed lower water absorption. All formulations were hy-
drophilic, with water drop angles below 90°. Opacity was
higher in formulations containing starch. FTIR spectra
showed characteristic peaks in the formulations with PVA
and starch. The formulations with PVA showed greater de-
gradability, although all formulations lost weight over time.
The bags can be manufactured from any formulation based
on the desired properties; formulations with PVA are ideal
for greater degradability and translucency, while those con-
taining corn starch are better for resistance, lower degrad-
ability, and water absorption.
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Conicts of interest
e authors declare that they have no conicts of interest.
Author contributions
Conceptualization: Augusta Jiménez-Sánchez. Data cu-
ration: Hillary Cabezas-Rodríguez, Romina Acurio-Roca-
fuerte. Formal analysis: Hillary Cabezas-Rodríguez, Romi-
na Acurio-Rocafuerte. Research: Augusta Jiménez-Sánchez,
Hillary Cabezas-Rodríguez, Romina Acurio-Rocafuerte.
Methodology: Augusta Jiménez-Sánchez. Software: Au-
gusta Jiménez-Sánchez. Supervision: Augusta Jiménez-Sán-
chez. Validation: Augusta Jiménez-Sánchez. Visualization:
Hillary Cabezas-Rodríguez, Romina Acurio-Rocafuerte.
Writing the original draft: Augusta Jiménez-Sánchez, Hil-
lary Cabezas-Rodríguez, Romina Acurio-Rocafuerte. Writ-
ing, review and editing: Augusta Jiménez-Sánchez, Hillary
Cabezas-Rodríguez, Romina Acurio-Rocafuerte.
Data availability statement
The datasets used and/or analyzed during the current study
are available from the corresponding author on reasonable
request.
Statement on the use of AI
The authors acknowledge the use of generative AI and AI-as-
sisted technologies to improve the readability and clarity of
the article.
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