Papers

61,005 results
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Article Tier 2

On the quest for novel bio-degradable plastics for agricultural field mulching

This review examined the challenge of developing biodegradable plastic mulch materials suitable for agricultural use, noting that plasticulture consumes about 6.7 million tons of plastic annually, most of which cannot be practically recycled. The authors assessed candidate biodegradable polymers based on their degradation rates in soil, mechanical performance, and cost.

2022 Frontiers in Bioengineering and Biotechnology 12 citations
Article Tier 2

Soil Bioplastic Mulches for Agroecosystem Sustainability: A Comprehensive Review

This review comprehensively assesses biodegradable plastic mulches as sustainable alternatives to conventional petroleum-based films in agriculture, examining their soil degradation, effects on microorganisms, weed control efficacy, and soil property impacts.

2023 Agriculture 58 citations
Article Tier 2

Advances in the Sustainable Use of Plastics in Horticulture—Perspectives, Innovations, Opportunities, and Limitations

This review assesses the sustainability of plastic use in horticulture — including mulch films, crop covers, and polytunnels — and evaluates options to reduce, reuse, recycle, or replace them. It matters for microplastics because agricultural plastics left in fields fragment into microplastics that contaminate soil and crops, and the review identifies where biodegradable or alternative materials offer the most practical substitution.

2023 Sustainability 6 citations
Article Tier 2

Biochar—A Filler in “Bioplastics” for Horticultural Applications

Researchers developed biochar-filled bioplastic materials for use in horticultural applications such as seedling trays and plant pots, testing their mechanical properties and biodegradability. The resulting composites showed promising performance as eco-friendly replacements for conventional plastic horticulture products.

2024 Materials 4 citations
Article Tier 2

Biodegradable Mulch for Vegetable Production. A Review

This review examined biodegradable plastic mulches as alternatives to conventional polyethylene mulch films in vegetable production, summarizing yield benefits and degradation performance. Replacing conventional plastic mulch with truly biodegradable alternatives could reduce the large amounts of agricultural microplastics shed by mulch film fragmentation.

2021 Middle East Journal of Agriculture Research 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Programmed biodegradation of polymer blends and composites for applications in agriculture and horticulture

Researchers developed and evaluated polymer blends and composites based on PHBV, PHBH, PBS, and PLA for agricultural and horticultural applications, demonstrating through greenhouse cultivation trials that these materials retained full mechanical integrity during use and achieved programmed biodegradation after harvest, reducing the risk of persistent microplastic accumulation compared to conventional plastics.

2025 Socio-Environmental Systems Modeling
Systematic Review Tier 1

Past, present, and future perspectives of biodegradable films for soil: A 30-year systematic review

This systematic review tracks 30 years of research on biodegradable films for agricultural soil use, analyzing trends and future directions. As concerns grow about conventional plastic mulch leaving microplastic residues in farmland, biodegradable alternatives are gaining attention. The review identifies which biodegradable materials show the most promise for replacing traditional plastic films while maintaining crop benefits.

2022 Frontiers in Bioengineering and Biotechnology 14 citations
Article Tier 2

Circular use of biobased plastics in agriculture and horticulture

Researchers presented outcomes from a three-year collaborative project developing biobased and biodegradable plastic products for agriculture and horticulture, demonstrating viable pathways for recycling, industrial composting, and programmed soil biodegradation across applications including growbags and plant propagation products, while introducing an online tool to help farmers select circular plastic options that minimise microplastic accumulation.

2025 Socio-Environmental Systems Modeling
Article Tier 2

A Comprehensive Review of Polyethylene and Biodegradable Plastic Mulch Films: Impacts on Soil Health and Plant Growth

This comprehensive review compares polyethylene and biodegradable plastic mulch films used in agriculture, examining their effects on soil properties, microplastic accumulation, plant growth, and the actual biodegradation performance of certified biodegradable alternatives under field conditions.

2025 International Journal of Environment and Climate Change
Article Tier 2

Bio-Based Materials for Packaging

This review evaluates bio-based materials as sustainable alternatives for plastic packaging, examining the environmental performance, mechanical properties, and commercial viability of biopolymers in addressing the global plastic pollution crisis.

2022 International Journal of Molecular Sciences 30 citations
Article Tier 2

Biodegradable Packaging : a Key to Environmental Sustainability

This paper reviews biodegradable packaging alternatives to conventional plastics, arguing that plant-based materials can reduce microplastic pollution in oceans, soil, and food systems. The authors survey available materials and manufacturing methods as part of a broader case for environmental sustainability.

2024 International Association of Biologicals and Computational Digest
Article Tier 2

Design of a Completely Eco-friendly Mulch Foil for Agricultural Production

This paper reviewed the development of eco-friendly mulch films for agriculture, examining biopolymer and composite alternatives to the 2.5 million tons of polyethylene mulch film used annually, with a focus on materials that degrade in soil without leaving persistent microplastic residues.

2025 RIMSI - Repository of the Institute for Multidisciplinary Research, Belgrade (University of Belgrade)
Article Tier 2

Applications of Starch Biopolymers for a Sustainable Modern Agriculture

This review explores how starch-based biopolymers can replace conventional plastic products in agriculture, including mulch films, packaging, and soil amendments. Researchers found that starch bioplastics are biodegradable under natural conditions and can reduce the accumulation of microplastics in agricultural soils. The study highlights the potential of these bio-based materials to support more sustainable farming practices while reducing plastic pollution.

2022 Sustainability 119 citations
Article Tier 2

Bioplastic- Futuristic Approach

This review examines bioplastics as a sustainable alternative to petrochemical-based plastics, covering materials derived from biomass such as starch, cellulose, and microbial polymers. The paper surveys the biodegradation properties, production methods, and limitations of current bioplastic technologies as part of a broader strategy to address global plastic pollution.

2024 INTERANTIONAL JOURNAL OF SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH IN ENGINEERING AND MANAGEMENT
Article Tier 2

Biodegradable Polymers: The Future of Sustainable Plastic Alternatives

This review examines biodegradable polymers as sustainable alternatives to petroleum-based plastics, evaluating their potential to reduce microplastic pollution and ecological degradation. The authors assess the performance, environmental fate, and scalability of current biodegradable materials, identifying key challenges for widespread adoption across packaging and consumer product applications.

2025 Scriptora International Journal of Research and Innovation (SIJRI)
Article Tier 2

The Use of Biodegradable Mulches in Pepper Production in the Southeastern United States

Researchers evaluated biodegradable mulch films as alternatives to conventional polyethylene mulch for pepper production in the southeastern United States, finding that certain biodegradable materials achieved comparable yields while reducing plastic waste and disposal costs.

2019 HortScience 19 citations
Article Tier 2

From plastic mulching to microplastic pollution : An effect assessment of microplastics in the soil-plant system

This review assessed how plastic mulching films contribute to agricultural microplastic pollution, finding that biodegradable alternatives rarely fully degrade under field conditions and instead fragment into microplastics, with both LDPE and biodegradable microplastics producing measurable ecological effects in soil-plant systems.

2021 5 citations
Article Tier 2

Are mulch biofilms used in agriculture an environmentally friendly solution? - An insight into their biodegradability and ecotoxicity using key organisms in soil ecosystems

Researchers assessed the biodegradation and ecotoxicity of a commercial biodegradable mulch biofilm in soil systems. The study found that while marketed as environmentally friendly alternatives to conventional plastic mulch, biodegradable films did not fully degrade under natural soil conditions as certification standards would predict. The results suggest that more rigorous testing under realistic field conditions is needed before assuming these products are safe for soil ecosystems.

2022 The Science of The Total Environment 53 citations
Article Tier 2

Advancements in the biopolymer films for food packaging applications: a short review

This review covers advances in biodegradable biopolymer films being developed to replace conventional plastic food packaging, which breaks down into microplastics that contaminate soil and water. While these plant-based alternatives show promise for reducing microplastic pollution, they still need improvements in strength and durability before they can compete with conventional plastics at commercial scale.

2024 Biotechnology for Sustainable Materials 43 citations
Article Tier 2

Economia Circular E Desenvolvimento Sustentável: Compostabilidade, Biodegradação E Inovação Em Biopolímeros E Compósitos Renováveis Para Aplicações Estruturais, Agrícolas E Embalagens

This review paper summarizes research on new plant-based plastics that can break down naturally in the environment, unlike regular plastics made from oil. These eco-friendly materials could replace traditional plastic in food packaging and farming, potentially reducing the tiny plastic particles that end up in our food and water. However, the technology still needs improvements and better waste management systems before these biodegradable plastics can widely replace regular plastics.

2026 Aracê.
Article Tier 2

Performance of Biodegradable Biochar-Added and Bio-Based Plastic Clips for Growing Tomatoes

Researchers evaluated biodegradable biochar-infused and bio-based plastic clips used for supporting tomato plants in commercial horticulture, comparing their performance and degradation to conventional plastic clips. Biochar addition improved mechanical strength of the biodegradable clips and did not harm tomato plant growth or yield over the growing season.

2022 Materials 9 citations
Article Tier 2

A Sustainable Approach to Plastics; Bioplastics

This review examines bioplastics as a sustainable alternative to conventional plastics, comparing bio-based and biodegradable options against traditional plastics on environmental impact, biodegradability standards, and performance, finding that while bioplastics offer potential solutions to microplastic generation and soil toxicity, standardization and lifecycle assessment remain key challenges.

2023 RECENT - REzultatele CErcetărilor Noastre Tehnice 3 citations
Article Tier 2

Recent Advances in Bioplastics: Application and Biodegradation

This review examines recent advances in bioplastics — including their applications in packaging, agriculture, and medicine — and critically evaluates their actual biodegradation performance in both natural and industrial environments, finding a significant gap between claims and real-world outcomes.

2020 Polymers 376 citations
Article Tier 2

Are biodegradable mulch films a sustainable solution to microplastic mulch film pollution? A biogeochemical perspective

This review asks whether biodegradable mulch films are truly a sustainable alternative to conventional plastic films used in agriculture. Researchers found that biodegradable microplastics may actually accumulate more readily in soil than traditional microplastics because they require specific conditions to fully break down. The study warns that biodegradable films could alter soil carbon and nitrogen cycling, microbial communities, and greenhouse gas emissions in ways not yet fully understood.

2023 Journal of Hazardous Materials 77 citations