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Papers
61,005 resultsShowing papers similar to [Degradation Processes of Biodegradable Plastics in Soil and Their Effects on Soil Animals].
ClearUnravelling the ecological ramifications of biodegradable microplastics in soil environment: A systematic review
Researchers reviewed 85 studies on biodegradable microplastics in soil, finding that when biodegradable plastics fail to fully break down they can disrupt soil structure, nutrient cycling, and microbial life in ways that depend heavily on concentration and plastic type. The review highlights that "biodegradable" plastics are not a simple fix for microplastic pollution in agricultural soils.
A progress update on the biological effects of biodegradable microplastics on soil and ocean environment: A perfect substitute or new threat?
This review examines whether biodegradable plastics, often marketed as eco-friendly alternatives, actually break down safely in the environment. The evidence shows that biodegradable plastics often fragment into microplastics rather than fully decomposing, and these biodegradable microplastics can harm soil organisms, marine life, and disrupt nutrient cycles. The findings suggest that simply switching to biodegradable plastics may not solve the microplastic pollution problem and could introduce new environmental risks.
A review of biodegradation and formation of biodegradable microplastics in soil and freshwater environments
Researchers reviewed how biodegradable plastics break down in soil and freshwater, finding that incomplete degradation by microorganisms can still produce tiny biodegradable microplastic particles that persist in the environment — meaning "biodegradable" doesn't always mean safe or fast-disappearing.
A review on the occurrence and influence of biodegradable microplastics in soil ecosystems: Are biodegradable plastics substitute or threat?
This review examines whether biodegradable plastics are a genuine solution to plastic pollution or may create new problems in soil ecosystems. Researchers found that many biodegradable plastics do not fully break down under natural conditions and may actually fragment into microplastics faster than conventional plastics, potentially posing additional threats to soil health.
Biodegradable plastics: mechanisms of degradation and generated bio microplastic impact on soil health
This review explains how biodegradable plastics break down through mechanical, thermal, light, and microbial processes, but warns that they still produce tiny fragments called bio-microplastics during degradation. These bio-microplastic fragments can affect soil health in both positive and negative ways, meaning that switching to biodegradable plastics does not fully eliminate the microplastic problem.
Biodegradable plastics in soils: sources, degradation, and effects
This review examines whether biodegradable plastics are truly a safe alternative to conventional plastics in soil. While they do break down faster, the degradation process releases microplastics and potentially toxic byproducts that can harm soil organisms, reduce plant growth, and disrupt the microbial communities that maintain soil health.
A review of the occurrence and degradation of biodegradable microplastics in soil environments
This review evaluates whether the shift from conventional plastics to biodegradable plastics is truly beneficial for the environment, particularly regarding microplastic formation in soils. Researchers found that biodegradable plastics actually form residual microplastics at a faster rate than conventional plastics, and these particles can negatively affect soil properties, microbial communities, and plant growth. The study suggests the environmental trade-offs of biodegradable plastics deserve closer scrutiny.
Micro Plastic Pollution in Soil Environment: A Comprehensive Review
This comprehensive review covers sources, distribution, degradation pathways, and ecological effects of microplastics in soil environments, highlighting threats to soil fauna, microbiota, and plant growth.
Microplastic accumulation in soils: Unlocking the mechanism and biodegradation pathway
Researchers reviewed how microplastics accumulate in soil and break down biologically, finding that certain microorganisms can form biofilms on plastic surfaces and use enzymes to slowly degrade the polymers — though conditions like pH, temperature, and moisture must be optimized and new plastic-degrading microbes need to be identified before this approach can be widely applied.
Degradation of biodegradable plastic films in soil: microplastics formation and soil microbial community dynamics
Scientists tracked what happens when biodegradable PBAT plastic films break down in soil over 180 days and found they release microplastics that peaked before declining. Fungi broke the films into smaller pieces while bacteria consumed the fragments, suggesting that even plastics marketed as biodegradable generate microplastics during their breakdown, though soil microbes can eventually help clean them up.
Biodegradation of Microplastics in Soil
This review examines how soil microorganisms, plants, and soil animals contribute to the biodegradation of microplastics, summarizing current methods and their influencing factors as more sustainable alternatives to conventional plastic waste management.
Impact of Biodegradable Plastics on Soil Health: Influence of Global Warming and Vice Versa
This review examines how biodegradable plastics affect soil health and how rising global temperatures may accelerate their breakdown and alter their environmental impact. Researchers found that biodegradable plastic fragments can change soil structure, microbial communities, and nutrient cycling, with effects varying by plastic type and environmental conditions. The study highlights a feedback loop where warming speeds plastic degradation while the resulting microplastics may further influence soil carbon processes.
Interaction of Invertebrates and Synthetic Polymers in Soil: A Review
This review summarizes how microplastics in soil harm invertebrates including nematodes, springtails, and earthworms, while some soil animals can fragment or ingest and transport plastic particles. The presence of microplastics in soil disrupts the gut function of soil organisms that play critical roles in maintaining healthy, productive soils.
Effects of Different Microplastics on Nematodes in the Soil Environment: Tracking the Extractable Additives Using an Ecotoxicological Approach
Researchers examined how different types of microplastics affect soil nematode populations by tracking extractable chemical additives released from the plastic particles. They found that microplastic composition, size, and shape influenced the types and amounts of chemicals leached into the soil, which in turn affected nematode survival and behavior. The study highlights that the indirect chemical effects of microplastics may be just as important as their physical presence in determining soil ecosystem impacts.
What do we know about how the terrestrial multicellular soil fauna reacts to microplastic?
This review analyzed the available literature on how soil-dwelling animals respond to microplastics and found evidence of uptake, bioaccumulation, and harmful effects across many groups including earthworms, springtails, and beetles. Most studies used high concentrations not yet found in real soils, limiting conclusions about current environmental risks.
What do we know about how the terrestrial multicellular soil fauna reacts to microplastic?
This review synthesized studies on how soil-dwelling animals — including earthworms, insects, and mites — respond to microplastic contamination, finding evidence of ingestion, tissue accumulation, and harmful effects across multiple soil organism groups. However, most studies used unrealistically high concentrations, making it difficult to draw firm conclusions about risks at current environmental levels.
Biodegradable Polyesters in Soil - Real Environmental Hazard or Just a Storm in a Teacup?
This review critically examines whether biodegradable polyesters genuinely degrade in soil environments, finding that under field conditions many degrade slowly and incompletely, forming persistent microplastic particles ('microbioplastics') with largely unknown ecological consequences.
Soils in distress: The impacts and ecological risks of (micro)plastic pollution in the terrestrial environment
This review examines how microplastics affect soil ecosystems, including their transport into soils, changes they undergo in the environment, and their interactions with soil organisms. The effects depend heavily on the type, shape, size, and amount of plastic particles present. Understanding these impacts is important because soil contamination with microplastics can affect food production and ultimately human exposure through the food chain.
Plastic pollution in terrestrial ecosystems: Current knowledge on impacts of micro and nano fragments on invertebrates
This review summarizes research on how micro- and nanoplastics affect soil-dwelling invertebrates like earthworms and insects, finding that effects vary widely depending on plastic type, shape, concentration, and exposure time. While no broad conclusions could be drawn, the documented sublethal effects on soil organisms could disrupt the soil ecosystems that support the crops humans depend on for food.
Biodegradable plastics in the air and soil environment: Low degradation rate and high microplastics formation
Researchers compared the degradation rates of various biodegradable plastic types in natural air and soil environments over time, finding that most degraded slowly under ambient conditions and generated substantial microplastic fragments, with non-certified biodegradable plastics showing essentially no degradation.
Microplastics in soils: Production, behavior process, impact on soil organisms, and related toxicity mechanisms
This review examines how microplastics enter and persist in soils, covering their sources from agricultural plastics, irrigation water, and atmospheric deposition. Researchers found that microplastics can alter soil structure, affect nutrient cycling, and harm soil organisms like earthworms and microbes. The study highlights significant gaps in understanding the long-term ecological consequences of soil microplastic contamination.
Biodegradable Polyesters and Low Molecular Weight Polyethylene in Soil: Interrelations of Material Properties, Soil Organic Matter Substances, and Microbial Community
Researchers examined how biodegradable polyesters and low molecular weight polyethylene behave in soil environments, investigating their interactions with soil organic matter and microbial communities over time. They found that both biodegradable and conventional polymer microplastics alter soil microbial community composition and interact with organic matter fractions, with biodegradable plastics showing distinct but not necessarily more benign effects than conventional plastics.
Potential strategies for bioremediation of microplastic contaminated soil
Researchers reviewed emerging bioremediation strategies for removing microplastics from contaminated soil, highlighting the roles of plants, root-zone microbes, soil animals like earthworms, and specialized bacteria and fungi that can use enzymes to break down plastic polymers into harmless compounds. While genetic engineering of microbes shows promise for accelerating degradation, the review notes that real-world application at scale still requires significant research and development.
Biodegradable plastics in soil: a significant gap from microplastics to nanoplastics and oligomers
This study examines the fragmentation of biodegradable plastics in soil, focusing on the intermediate products formed as these materials break down from microplastics to nanoplastics and oligomers. The research highlights a significant knowledge gap regarding the environmental risks posed by these intermediate degradation products in soil ecosystems.