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Published June 2025 | Published
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Eco-friendly mixed-metal MOF embedded in PVA-based packaging films for ethylene adsorption and enhancing fresh produce shelf-life

Kazemi, Amir1, 2 ORCID icon
Mohammadi, Mohammad1
Pordsari, Mahyar Ashourzadeh1
Tamtaji, Mohsen3
Baesmat, Hasan1
Keshavarz, Saber1
Zeinali, Fateme1
Manteghi, Faranak1 ORCID icon
Fasihi, Mohammad1
Ghaemi, Ahad1
Rohani, Sohrab2
Goddard, William A., III4 ORCID icon
  • 1. ROR icon Iran University of Science and Technology
  • 2. ROR icon Western University
  • 3. ROR icon Sharif University of Technology
  • 4. ROR icon California Institute of Technology

Abstract

This study aims to investigate the integration of MOF materials into packaging films to improve their functional properties, prolong the shelf life of fresh produce, and minimize economic losses caused by post-harvest spoilage. Ethylene plays a significant role in accelerating the aging and spoilage of fruits and vegetables, creating a demand for advanced food packaging systems capable of scavenging ethylene without external activation. This study introduces an eco-friendly ethylene scavenger based on mixed-metal MOF-74, synthesized via a green method that replaces toxic solvents with sustainable alternatives. The optimized G-CuZnMOF-74, with a 2:1 Cu/Zn ratio, exhibited an exceptional ethylene adsorption capacity of 5.26 mmol/g at 25 °C and 110 kPa. Theoretical calculations confirmed enhanced ethylene binding, with an adsorption energy of ∆E_C₂H₄ = − 0.42 eV surpassing single-metal MOF-74. To integrate this high-performance material into a functional packaging solution, G-CuZnMOF-74 was embedded in a PVA-based packaging film (PVA-PEG/G-CuZnMOF-74). This film significantly reduced ethylene-induced ripening in green bananas, maintaining over 60 % of their initial firmness and minimizing weight loss and browning over 20 days at 25 °C. Additionally, the inclusion of G-CuZnMOF-74 enhanced the film's tensile strength from 27.82 MPa to 40.66 MPa and improved its water vapor barrier properties by 23 % (p < 0.05), contributing to its durability and protective performance.

Copyright and License

© 2025 Elsevier Ltd. All rights are reserved, including those for text and data mining, AI training, and similar technologies.

Contributions

Sohrab Rohani: Funding acquisition, Formal analysis, Data curation, Conceptualization. Ahad Ghaemi: Investigation, Funding acquisition, Formal analysis, Data curation, Conceptualization. Mohammad Mohammadi: Writing – review & editing, Writing – original draft, Visualization, Validation, Software, Resources, Project administration, Methodology, Investigation, Funding acquisition, Formal analysis, Data curation, Conceptualization. Goddard III William A.: Software, Resources, Project administration, Methodology, Investigation, Conceptualization. Amir Kazemi: Writing – review & editing, Writing – original draft, Visualization, Validation, Software, Resources, Project administration, Methodology, Investigation, Funding acquisition, Formal analysis, Data curation, Conceptualization. Mohsen Tamtaji: Funding acquisition, Formal analysis, Data curation, Conceptualization. Mahyar Ashourzadeh Pordsari: Funding acquisition, Formal analysis, Data curation, Conceptualization. Hasan Baesmat: Funding acquisition, Formal analysis, Data curation, Conceptualization. Fateme Zeinali: Funding acquisition, Formal analysis, Data curation, Conceptualization. Saber Keshavarz: Funding acquisition, Formal analysis, Data curation, Conceptualization. Mohammad Fasihi: Writing – review & editing, Writing – original draft, Visualization, Validation, Supervision, Software, Resources, Project administration, Methodology, Investigation, Funding acquisition, Formal analysis, Data curation, Conceptualization. Faranak Manteghi: Writing – review & editing, Writing – original draft, Visualization, Validation, Supervision, Software, Resources, Project administration, Methodology, Investigation, Funding acquisition, Formal analysis, Data curation, Conceptualization.

Conflict of Interest

The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.

Acknowledgement

Our gratitude goes out to the Iran University of Science and Technology (IUST) for providing us with some facilities and materials. In this study, no specific grants were received from public, commercial, or non-profit funding agencies.

Supplemental Material

Supplementary material

Data Availability

Data will be made available on request.
 

Additional details

Funding Caltech Custom Metadata
Created:
July 23, 2025
Modified:
July 23, 2025