| ABSTRACT |
The present invention disclosed the formulation and processing method to produce biocomposite buccal films comprising gellan gum (GG) as a film-forming matrix and lemon peel fiber (LPF), derived from the white inner albedo of lemon peel, as a reinforcing filler. The invention further provides a solvent-casting method comprising dispersion of LPF in an aqueous GG system containing glycerine as a plasticizer, casting, and drying to form a self-supporting film, as illustrated in Figure 1. The preferred 5 wt.% LPF formulation exhibited a tensile strength of 30.8 ± 1.4 MPa and tensile toughness of 57.9 ± 10.8 MPa. Films containing 3¿7 wt.% LPF exceeded 300 folds upon folding endurance test, while the 5 wt.% LPF film exhibited an ex-vivo mucoadhesive residence time of 7 hours 15 minutes. The invention provides a route for valorizing lemon peel waste into a natural reinforcing phase for gellan-gum biocomposite films for buccal delivery application.
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