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61,005 resultsShowing papers similar to Effects of aging behavior of biodegradable mulch on soil microbial community composition: An offline simulation study
ClearEffect of Multiyear Biodegradable Plastic Mulch on Soil Microbial Community, Assembly, and Functioning
This study examined how using biodegradable plastic mulch (PBAT) on farmland for multiple years affected soil microbes. The mulch changed the types of bacteria and fungi in the soil, including encouraging bacteria that may help break down plastic but also disrupting natural nutrient cycling. The findings raise questions about whether biodegradable plastic alternatives are truly safe for long-term agricultural use, since they still alter soil ecosystems as they break down into microplastics.
The Ecological Trap: Biodegradable Mulch Film Residue Undermines Soil Fungal Network Stability
Researchers compared microplastic accumulation, soil fungal communities, and ecological network stability under conventional polyethylene and biodegradable PLA+PBAT mulch film residues in a maize field. Both film types disrupted fungal network stability, but biodegradable films produced smaller MP particles that penetrated soil more deeply and altered fungal diversity differently.
Composted PBST Biodegradable Mulch Film Residues Enhance Crop Development: Insights into Microbial Community Assembly, Network Interactions, and Soil Metabolism
Researchers studied how composting residues from PBST biodegradable mulch film affect crop development, soil microbial communities, and soil metabolism. The study found that while biodegradable mulch films are designed to break down completely, their residues can persist and transform into microplastics, though composting these residues appeared to enhance crop development through changes in microbial community assembly and soil metabolic processes.
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.
Investigating the Degradation of Biodegradable Mulch Films in Agricultural Soil: A Molecular Approach
Researchers investigated the field degradation of biodegradable mulch films composed of starch and poly(butylene-adipate-co-terephthalate) over 16 months under Mediterranean climate conditions, using molecular methods to characterize how pristine and UV-aged films break down in agricultural soil.
The Succession of Bacterial Community Attached on Biodegradable Plastic Mulches During the Degradation in Soil
Researchers studied how bacterial communities colonize and change over time on biodegradable plastic mulches buried in soil for five months. The study found that plastic composition and incubation time significantly shaped microbial communities, and notably, potential pathogens were detected at higher levels on biodegradable plastics compared to conventional polyethylene mulch.
Effect of Long-Term Biodegradable Film Mulch on Soil Physicochemical and Microbial Properties
Long-term use of biodegradable mulch film was compared to conventional plastic and no-mulch controls in terms of soil physical, chemical, and microbial properties, with results showing that biodegradable mulch altered soil structure and microbial diversity in ways differing from both conventional plastic and bare soil. The findings raise questions about the cumulative effects of biodegradable plastic residues on agricultural soil health.
Conventional and biodegradable agricultural microplastics: effects on soil properties and microbial functions across a European pedoclimatic gradient
Researchers compared the effects of conventional polyethylene and biodegradable PBAT-starch mulching film microplastics on soil properties, microbial diversity, litter decomposition, and greenhouse gas emissions across soils from multiple European climates, finding type- and concentration-dependent effects on soil ecosystem function.
Biodegradable mulch films exhibit slower-than-expected degradation with negligible effects on soil microbial communities
Researchers ran a year-long field trial with seven biodegradable plastic mulch films in the UK, finding that none fragmented into soil microplastics as expected and all degraded far more slowly than current industry standards suggest they should. Despite virtually no measurable impact on soil microbial communities, the results challenge the assumption that biodegradable plastics reliably break down under real farming conditions.
Preliminary Findings of Polypropylene Carbonate (PPC) Plastic Film Mulching Effects on the Soil Microbial Community
Researchers examined how polypropylene carbonate biodegradable film mulching affects soil microbial community composition and function compared to bare soil, finding that PPC film alters microbial diversity and activity during decomposition in agricultural settings.
Poly (butylene adipate terephthalate) degradation products and their influence on plant progression and soil microbial diversity
This study examined how the biodegradable plastic PBAT degrades in soil and what effects its degradation products have on Chinese cabbage growth and soil microbial diversity, finding that degradation varied with particle size and that soil microbiomes shifted as PBAT broke down. The findings matter for assessing whether "biodegradable" mulch films truly disappear benignly or leave behind microplastic fragments and microbial disruption in agricultural soils.
Soil constituents mediate the effects of microplastics from biodegradable mulch on soil biogeochemical properties
Researchers studied how soil constituents (organic matter, clay content) mediate the effects of microplastics from biodegradable mulch films on soil biogeochemical properties. Soil type significantly altered how MPs influenced carbon and nitrogen cycling and microbial communities, suggesting that biodegradable MPs cannot be assumed safe across all soil contexts.
Structural and Functional Responses of Soil Microbial Communities to Biodegradable Plastic Film Mulching in Two Agroecosystems
Researchers investigated the effects of biodegradable plastic mulch films (BDMs) on soil microbial communities over two years at sites in Tennessee and Washington, finding that mulch treatment type had minimal impact on bacterial community structure or extracellular enzyme activity compared to the stronger effects of location and season.
Effects of mulching film on soil microbial diversity and community of cotton
Researchers compared how traditional polyethylene (PE) plastic mulch and biodegradable PBAT mulch affect soil microbes in Chinese cotton fields. PBAT mulch significantly altered the diversity of soil fungi — particularly boosting Gibellulopsis — while neither type of mulch strongly affected bacterial diversity, suggesting biodegradable mulch changes the soil ecosystem in ways that need further study.
Biodegradable Plastic Mulch Films: Impacts on Soil Microbial Communities and Ecosystem Functions
This review examines how biodegradable plastic mulch films affect soil microbial communities and ecosystem functions compared to conventional polyethylene mulches. Researchers found that while biodegradable films avoid the problem of permanent plastic accumulation, their breakdown products can still alter soil microbiomes and carbon cycling in ways that are not yet fully understood. The study highlights the need for long-term field research to determine whether biodegradable mulches are truly a sustainable alternative for agriculture.
Biodegradation of PBSA Films by Elite Aspergillus Isolates and Farmland Soil
Researchers isolated two Aspergillus fungal strains from farmland soil that efficiently degrade PBSA biodegradable mulch films, demonstrating that agricultural soils harbor fungi capable of breaking down these plastic alternatives under realistic field conditions.
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.
The fate of post-use biodegradable PBAT-based mulch films buried in agricultural soil
Scientists tracked the breakdown of a biodegradable mulch film in farm soil over 16 months and found that while the film lost more than half its surface area, it released microplastics into the surrounding soil during the process. About 17-23% of the original film material was still recoverable from the soil after nearly 500 days. The study shows that even biodegradable plastics can be a source of microplastic contamination in agricultural soils.
Aging of biodegradable plastics alters soil aggregate stability and organic carbon through shifts in microbial community composition
Researchers examined how polylactic acid (PLA) drinking straw fragments at varying concentrations alter soil aggregate stability, organic carbon, and microbial communities, finding that moderate concentrations initially boosted aggregate stability and microbial diversity before higher concentrations caused decline, while PLA degradation enriched potentially pathogenic bacteria.
Links among Microbial Communities, Soil Properties and Functions: Are Fungi the Sole Players in Decomposition of Bio-Based and Biodegradable Plastic?
Researchers studied the decomposition of biodegradable PBSA plastic in soil with and without nitrogen fertilizer, finding that both bacteria and fungi participated in degradation and that fertilizer addition altered the microbial community structure during decomposition. The results show that soil nutrient status influences how quickly and through which microbial pathways biodegradable plastics are broken down.
Evaluating the Impact of Traditional and Biodegradable Mulch Film Residues on Heavy Metal Dynamics and Maize Productivity: Insights from Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungi Community Analysis
Researchers compared the long-term effects of traditional polyethylene and biodegradable mulch film residues on soil properties, heavy metal uptake in maize, and beneficial soil fungi communities. Traditional mulch residues increased the accumulation of arsenic and cadmium in maize roots while altering soil chemistry, whereas biodegradable mulch residues also affected fungal communities but in different ways. The study suggests that neither type of mulch film is without environmental consequence, and that their residues can influence both crop safety and soil microbial health.
Aging of biodegradable microplastics and their effect on soil properties: Control from soil water
Researchers studied how biodegradable microplastics made from PLA and PBAT break down in different soil types under varying water conditions. They found that while these plastics aged more in dry and alternating wet-dry conditions, flooded conditions caused bigger changes to soil chemistry, including increased dissolved organic carbon. The study suggests that even biodegradable plastics can meaningfully alter soil properties, and the effects depend heavily on moisture conditions.
Microbiome dynamics of soils covered by plastic and bioplastic mulches
Researchers compared how conventional polyethylene plastic mulch and biodegradable Mater-Bi bioplastic mulch affect soil microbiomes over 12 months in controlled conditions. Bioplastic mulch increased bacterial diversity over time and favored distinct microbial communities, though fungal and microarthropod communities were not significantly affected by mulch type, highlighting that bioplastics interact with soil life differently than conventional plastics.
Degradation of Biodegradable Mulch-Derived Microplastics and Their Effects on Bacterial Communities and Radish Growth in Three Vegetable-Cultivated Purple Soils
Biodegradable mulch films are increasingly used in agriculture as a "greener" alternative to conventional plastic, but their breakdown products — biodegradable microplastics — still have significant effects on soil and crops. A pot experiment across three soil types found that both conventional and biodegradable microplastics altered soil bacteria communities, with biodegradable plastics notably promoting the growth of specific plastic-degrading bacteria. Importantly, the effects on soil chemistry and radish growth varied substantially depending on soil type, suggesting that blanket recommendations about biodegradable mulch safety are premature without site-specific assessment.