Natural rubber from different Hevea braziliensis clones, namely RRIM600, RRIT251, PB235 and BPM24, exhibit unique properties. The influences of the various fresh natural rubber latex and cream concentrated latex on the non-rubber components related properties were studied. It was found that the fresh natural rubber latex exhibited differences in their particle size, which was attributed to the non-rubber and unique signature of clones which affect various properties. Meanwhile, the cream concentrated latex showed the protein contents, surface tension, and color of creamed latex to be lower than the fresh natural latex. However, TSC, DRC, viscosity, particle size and green strength of concentrated latex were found to be higher than the fresh natural latex. This is attributed to the incorporation of HEC molecules. Also, the rubber particle size distribution in the RRIM600 clone exhibited a large particle size and uniform distribution, showing good mechanical properties when compared to the other clones. Furthermore, the increased green strength in the RRIM600 clone can be attributed to the crystallization of the chain on straining and chain entanglement. These experimental results may provide benefits for manufacturing rubber products, which can be selected from a suitable clone.

A novel active bio-based pressure-sensitive adhesive incorporating cinnamon oil (Bio-PSA/CO) obtained from the mixture of natural rubber (NR), xyloglucan (XG), and cinnamon oil (CO) for food antimicrobial applications were successfully developed by using a two-roll mill mixer. The effect of the main process factors (i.e., nip gap and mastication time) and XG content on the adhesion properties of the obtained PSA were investigated with different coated substrates including kraft paper, nylon film, polypropylene (PP) film, and aluminum foil (Al). The results suggested that the developed NR-PSA/CO could be applied well to all types of substrate materials. Peel strength and shear strength of the NR-PSA/CO with all substrate types were in the ranges of ~0.03 × 10²–5.64 × 10² N/m and ~0.24 × 10⁴–9.50 × 10⁴ N/m², respectively. The proper processed condition of the NR-PSA/CO was represented with a nip gap of 2 mm and a mastication time of 15 min. An increase in XG content up to 40–60 phr can improve the adhesion properties of the adhesive. The resulting material could be used as an active sticky patch to extend the shelf-life of food in a closed packaging system. The shelf-life of the food samples (banana cupcake) could be extended from 4 to 9 days with NR-PSA/CO patch.

Polymer composites of polylactic acid (PLA) and polybutylene adipate terephthalate (PBAT) incorporated with spent coffee grounds (SCG) and tea leave (TL) were prepared by two-roll mill mixer. 4,4-methylene diphenyl diisocyanate (MDI), toluene 2,4-diisocyanate (TDI), and bis[3-(triethoxysilyl) propyl] tetrasulfide (TESPT) were used as coupling agents. The influences of coupling agent types, coupling agent content, and weight ratios of polymer to filler on the mechanical properties, melt flow index, and overall migration (OM) of the composites were studied. The results showed that MDI and TDI had better performance compared to TESPT for both tensile and elongation at break. The tensile strength and elongation at break of PLA+PBAT/SCG composites with weight ratio of polymer to filler = 70/30 increased from 19.6 MPa to ∼23.0 to 25.0 MPa, and 6.6 to ∼10.0%, respectively when using these coupling agents (MDI and TDI) of 3 g/100 g polymers. Moreover, the addition of MDI and TDI greatly increased the viscosity of the melted composites (4-fold), while TESPT made the viscosity decrease. However, the mechanical properties of the composites decreased drastically with increasing SCG proportion. Compared to PLA+PBAT/SCG, interfacial adhesion of PLA+PBAT/TL was higher confirming by tensile strength and SEM images. However, there was no significant difference between PLA+PBAT/TL and PLA+PBAT/SCG composites in terms of elongation at break, impact strength and melt flow index. The OM of PLA+PBAT/SCG and PLA+PBAT/TL composites with coupling agents were in the range of ∼0.03–0.28 mg/dm² when using 3% acetic acid and 10% ethanol as food simulants, which not excess the migration limit (10 mg/dm²) according to Food Contact Materials EU No. 10/2011 legislation. It means that they might be safe for use as food contact materials for packaging and containers.