Development, Characterization, Antimicrobial Activity, and Biodegradability Assessment of Bioplastic From Rice and Banana Peel Waste

The increasing accumulation of petroleum-based plastics has generated considerable environmental concerns and created an urgent need for biodegradable materials derived from
renewable resources. The present study investigated the development, characterization, antimicrobial activity, and biodegradability of bioplastic films prepared from rice (Oryza sativa) starch and banana (Musa paradisiaca) peel waste. Rice starch was used as the primary film-forming polymer, while processed banana peel waste was incorporated as a natural reinforcing and functional component. Glycerol was used as a plasticizer to improve flexibility and film-forming properties. Bioplastic films were prepared by the starch gelatinization method using different
proportions of rice starch and banana peel powder. The optimized formulation was characterized for thickness, moisture content, water absorption, water solubility, swelling behaviour, tensile strength, elongation at break, surface morphology, and functional groups. In this illustrative dataset, the optimized film exhibited a thickness of 0.34 mm, tensile strength of 4.6 MPa, elongation at break of 21.3%, moisture content of 11.7%, and water absorption of 39.8%. FTIR analysis showed characteristic absorption bands corresponding to hydroxyl, carbonyl, and C–O functional groups, indicating interactions among the film constituents. Antibacterial activity was evaluated against Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus, producing illustrative inhibition zones of 10.2 and 12.1 mm, respectively. Antifungal activity against Candida albicans produced an illustrative inhibition zone of 8.6 mm. Soil-burial biodegradation testing demonstrated an illustrative weight loss of 61.5% after 30 days, indicating substantial degradation under the experimental conditions. Overall, the study demonstrates the potential of rice starch and banana peel waste for the development of biodegradable bioplastic films with measurable mechanical, physicochemical, antimicrobial, and biodegradation characteristics. The utilization of banana peel waste additionally provides an approach for converting food-processing residues into value-added biomaterials. Such materials may have potential for selected short-life packaging applications,although further optimization, toxicity assessment, shelf-life studies, and application-specific testing are required.