Surface Modification of Polymers for Food Science

Polymers are the most important class of materials extensively studied and used for different application due to their unique properties such as lightweight, malleability, mechanical strength, gas barrier behavior, easy to process, versatility, and so on. Bulk properties could be correlated or not to their surface properties, including hydrophilic/hydrophobic nature so-called wettability, adsorption of molecules, permeation of molecules, microorganisms interaction, chemical and/or biological reaction, roughness, friction, adhesion, presence of impurities, and so on. Any alteration in the surface properties could be reflected on the bulk properties and vice versa, influencing the final polymers performances and applications. Sometimes, the polymer surface modification is used to add new properties on the surface, independently of the characteristics of the bulk. Of course, the chemical composition of the polymer plays the key role in these modifications. Considering the importance of such materials in all fields, many polymer surface modification techniques, so-called surface functionalization, have been studied. They are mainly categorized into three main groups: physicochemical, mechanical, and biological methods. Therefore, in this chapter, these techniques will be reviewed, with special attention on the possible application in the food packaging field