Tuning mechanical properties of seaweeds for hard capsules: A step forward for a sustainable drug delivery medium

Mohd Aiman, Hamdan
Khairatun Najwa, Mohd Amin
Rajan, Jose
Martin, Darren
Fatmawati, Adam

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Publication date

January 2021

DOI

10.1016/j.fhfh.2021.100023

Publisher

Elsevier BV

Abstract

At present, vegetarian hard capsules from hydroxypropyl methyl cellulose is highly attractive to consumer market. However, the production volume is still low due to expensive raw polymer materials. Most of the renewable polymers do not meet sufficient mechanical strength for developing hard capsules. This work demonstrates that the mechanical properties of carrageenan, a sea-based edible material known as seaweeds, could be enhanced by the addition of small amounts (<2 wt./v%) of cellulose nanocrystals (CNC) for developing hard capsules. The microstructure and mechanical properties of the cellulose toughened carrageenan films are systematically correlated to the rheology of the solution from which the films were prepared. Carrageenan films ...