Ability of Fungal Strains to Degrade PVA Based Materials

The aim of this work was to select a fungal strain with degradative potential upon PVA based materials. The polymeric materials tested were PVA films which contain different percentages of PVA, starch and glycerol. These materials are of interest for food packaging applications, which presume to solve the problems concerning accumulation, disposal and degradation. Eleven strains were tested in solid culture for the ability to use PVA based composites as carbon and energy sources. The fungal strain selected was cultivated in liquid medium with different compositions. The scanning electron microscopy (SEM) investigations revealed the effects of microorganism growth upon polymeric films. Significant changes in polymer surface aspects were observed depending on the medium culture composition, the presence of supplementary carbon source facilitating microbial growth and degradation process.