A Study to evaluate the permeation characteristics of black tea flavors and linalool in four different plastic films

The use of plastic films has seen tremendous growth during the past decades. The US Flexible Packaging Association 1994 Annual Report revealed that flexible packaging sales are predicted at US $13.2 billion and 50% of the flexible packaging is produced for food items. It is also realized that polymeric films interact with their environments differently than do glass or metal containers. Volatile flavor compounds from food items can dissolve and diffuse in the polymeric membrane. These movement is especially important when the loss of these flavors results in the lowering of the product quality and acceptance. The permeation characteristics of black tea flavors and linalool were evaluated in four different plastic films (QHE, MET-HB, AOH and Barex), using an isostatic test procedure. Presently there is no data available for black tea flavors and only very little data for linalool, on the transport of such organic penetrants through plastic membranes. The permeation results collected from the MAS 2000, Organic Flavor Detector, suggested that each film has a different barrier property to linalool and the black tea flavors. The relationship between the permeation characteristics of linalool and the black tea flavors could not be established at this present time, as more data are needed to verify the permeation profile in each film, especially for the black tea flavors. Recommendations for further improvement and research were suggested to determine which of the four films would offer the best flavor barrier to linalool and black tea at room temperature