Preliminary Studies on Making Antibacterial Latex-Chitosan Film Composite

Research on the application of chitosan as an edible film and coating has been developed. However, its hydrophilic nature causes edible films and coatings to be sensitive to air humidity so that they have a low moisture barrier. In addition, chitosan also has low thermal stability. This research combines natural rubber which is hydrophobic with relatively high thermal stability with chitosan which is antibacterial. The composite film between latex and chitosan was made by using the pour solution method. The occurrence of composites between latex and chitosan was proven from the results of FTIR and SEM characterization. The results of TGA characterization showed that the latex film (sample L1) had the highest thermal stability and the latex-chitosan composite (sample L1C3) had the lowest thermal stability. In the antibacterial test, it was concluded that the latex-chitosan film composite did not have bacteriocidal properties which was thought to be caused by the amine group in chitosan which could not diffuse on the media because it had formed a composite with latex. Based on the results of characterization and tests that have been carried out, it is concluded that the latex-chitosan composite film has thermal stability, optimal morphology in oxygen exchange with carbon dioxide, and has unmissable bacteriostatic properties. bacteria, liquid droplets, and moisturizers are samples of the L1C1 formula which is a sample with a 1% chitosan content. Keywords: Latex; Chitosan; Chitosan Latex Composite Film; Solution Casting; Thermal Stability; Antibacterial