Assessment of the Impact of Different Treatments on the Technological and Antifungal Properties of Papyrus (<i>Cyperus Papyrus</i> L.) Sheets

• Main Authors: Ayman S. Taha, Mohamed Z. M. Salem, Wael A. A. Abo Elgat, Hayssam M. Ali, Ashraf A. Hatamleh, Eslam M. Abdel-Salam
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: MDPI AG 2019-02-01
• Series: Materials
• Subjects: papyrus; mechanical; biological properties; antifungal activity
• Online Access: https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1944/12/4/620

In the present work, sheets of Papyrus (<i>Cyperus papyrus</i> L.), manufactured by lamination from strips pre-treated with different treatments, were evaluated for their technological and fungal infestation properties (<i>Aspergillus flavus</i> AFl375, <i>A. niger</i> Ani245 and <i>Colletotrichum gloeosporioides</i> Cgl311). The results showed that the highest values of tensile strength, tear strength, burst index and double-fold number were observed in papyrus sheets produced from strips treated with nano-cellulose (0.25%), dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO 10%), Tylose (0.25%) and nano-cellulose (0.5%), with values of 98.90 N&#183;m/g, 2343.67 mN&#183;m²/g, 1162 kpa&#183;m²/g and 8.33, respectively. The percentage of brightness ranged from 49.7% (strips treated with KOH 2% + 100 mL NaClO) to 9.6% (strips treated with <i>Eucalyptus camaldulensis</i> bark extract 2%), while the percentage of darkness ranged from 99.86% (strips treated with <i>Salix babylonica</i> leaf extract 2% or <i>E. camaldulensis</i> bark extract 0.5%) to 67.26% (strips treated with NaOH (2%) + 100 mL NaClO). From the SEM examination, sheets produced from treated strips with extracts from <i>P. rigida</i> and <i>E. camaldulensis</i> or <i>S. babylonica</i> showed no growths of <i>A. flavus</i> and <i>C. gloeosporioides</i>. Additionally, other pre-treatments, such as Nano-cellulose+Tylose 0.5% (1:1 <i>v</i>/<i>v</i>) and Tylose 0.5%, were also found to have no growth of <i>A. niger</i>. In conclusion, strips pre-treated with nanomaterials and extracts were enhanced in terms of the technological and antifungal properties of produced Papyrus sheets, respectively.