Fabrication of electrospun almond gum/PVA nanofibers as a thermostable delivery system for vanillin

• Aqueous solutions of almond gum/PVA in different proportions were electrospun.
• Vanillin was incorporated in almond gum/PVA uniform nanofibers.
• Thermal stability of incorporated vanillin was higher than free vanillin.
• Almond gum/PVA/vanillin nanofibers were characterized using FESEM, FTIR, TGA and XRD.

In this study, the fabrication of vanillin incorporated almond gum/polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) nanofibers through electrospinning has been investigated. Electrospinning of only almond gum was proved impossible. It was found that the aqueous solution of almond gum/PVA (80:20, concentration = 7% (w/w)) containing 3% (w/w) vanillin could have successfully electrospun to uniform nanofibers with diameters as low as 77 nm. According to the thermal analysis, incorporated vanillin in almond gum/PVA nanofibers showed higher thermal stability than free vanillin, making this composite especially suitable for high temperature applications. XRD and FTIR analyses proved the presence of vanillin in the almond gum/PVA nanofibers. It was also found that vanillin was dispersed as big crystallites in the matrix of almond gum/PVA nanofibers. FTIR analysis showed almond gum and PVA had chemical cross-linking by etheric bonds between COH groups of almond gum and OH groups of PVA. Also, in the nanofibers, there were no major interaction between vanillin and either almond gum or PVA.