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The desiccants are used in various fields and applications like water wastewater treatment, biomedical applications, agriculture and food sector. This study involves the preparation of the biodegradable composite desiccant to increase the shelf life of banana. The desiccant was prepared with chitosan and sodium metasilicate using different methodological processes. Moisture absorption test was conducted at 30ï‚°C and 80% RH; 40ï‚°C and 80% RH; 30ï‚°C and 70% RH; 40ï‚°C and 70% RH. The desiccant is also prepared with aluminum hydroxide/chloride and chitosan. The moisture absorption was compared with the silica-chitosan desiccant. A pilot testing was done to determine the shelf life of banana. The desiccant with maximum absorption capacity was kept with banana. It was compared with the banana kept without the desiccant. Physical characteristic of the banana was noted for this study like appearance, size, color and ripening stage. In the moisture absorption study, the desiccant 10/2 Si-CS- HNO3 showed maximum absorption even after 5 days. 26/1Si-CS composite also showed high moisture absorption (21%) as compared to other materials. However, its efficiency was found to less than the 10/2Si-CS- HNO3 composite. The composite showed maximum absorption after 24 hours. The rate of absorption for AlOOH–chitosan composite was 22%, AlCl3.6H20 composite was 20% and Al-CS- Ca(OH)2 composite was less than 10%. The composite was kept with 10/2 Si-CS- HNO3 composite to determine the shelf life of banana. We observed that the banana kept in plastic bag had shelf life of 2 days as the banana got decayed. But, when kept with desiccant, the banana is can be edible even after 5th day at 40 ï‚°C and got decayed with fungal infection on 7th day of the experiment. This desiccant can be added in packages along with the fruits to enhance its shelf life.
KEYWORDS: Nanomaterials, Food packaging, Sustainable, Desiccants
