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61,005 resultsShowing papers similar to Effects of biodegradable plastics on soil properties and greenhouse gas production
ClearEffect of polylactic acid microplastics on soil properties, soil microbials and plant growth
Researchers tested whether microplastics from biodegradable polylactic acid plastic, often proposed as an eco-friendly alternative to conventional plastic, affect soil health and plant growth. High concentrations of these biodegradable microplastics reduced soil pH, altered the ratio of carbon to nitrogen, decreased plant growth, and shifted soil microbial communities. The study suggests that even biodegradable plastics can negatively affect agricultural ecosystems when they break down into microplastic-sized particles.
Effects of biodegradable microplastics and straw addition on soil greenhouse gas emissions
Researchers tested how biodegradable microplastics made from polylactic acid (PLA) affect greenhouse gas emissions from soil, both with and without added crop straw. They found that high concentrations of PLA microplastics significantly increased carbon dioxide emissions while decreasing nitrous oxide emissions, suggesting that even biodegradable alternatives to conventional plastic mulch films can meaningfully alter soil chemistry and gas cycles.
Impacts of pristine, aged and leachate of conventional and biodegradable plastics on plant growth and soil organic carbon
Researchers compared the effects of conventional plastics (polyethylene, polypropylene) and biodegradable alternatives (polyhydroxybutyrate, polylactic acid) on ryegrass growth and soil health in both pristine and aged forms. They found that all plastic types, whether conventional or biodegradable, reduced plant biomass, lowered soil pH and organic matter, and increased CO2 respiration rates. The study provides evidence that biodegradable plastics are not necessarily safer for soil ecosystems than conventional plastics.
Insights into effects of conventional and biodegradable microplastics on organic carbon decomposition in different soil aggregates
Researchers compared how conventional polypropylene and biodegradable polylactic acid microplastics affect carbon decomposition in different sizes of soil aggregates. Both types of microplastics increased carbon dioxide emissions from soil, but the effects varied depending on particle type, concentration, and aggregate size. The study reveals that microplastics can alter soil carbon cycling at a fundamental structural level, with biodegradable plastics not necessarily being more benign than conventional ones.
Biodegradable microplastics decreased plant-derived and increased microbial-derived carbon formation in soil: a two-year field trial
A two-year field experiment compared the effects of conventional (polypropylene) and biodegradable (polylactic acid, PLA) microplastics on soil carbon cycling in agricultural soil. Researchers found that while neither plastic type changed total soil carbon levels, PLA microplastics significantly reduced plant-derived carbon (lignin) by 32% while boosting microbial-derived carbon, suggesting that "biodegradable" plastics still meaningfully alter soil biology and chemistry. This matters because it challenges the assumption that biodegradable plastics are environmentally benign once they break down in farmland.
Biodegradable and conventional microplastics exhibit distinct microbiome, functionality, and metabolome changes in soil
Researchers compared the effects of conventional plastics (polyethylene and polystyrene) and biodegradable plastics (polylactide and polybutylene succinate) on soil microbial communities. They found that both types of microplastics significantly altered soil microbial composition, but biodegradable microplastics had a more pronounced impact on soil metabolic function and microbial activity than conventional ones.
Discrepant soil microbial community and C cycling function responses to conventional and biodegradable microplastics
Scientists compared how conventional polyethylene and biodegradable polylactic acid microplastics affect soil microbial communities and carbon cycling. Researchers found that the two types of microplastics had markedly different effects, with biodegradable plastics causing more changes to microbial community structure and carbon-related gene activity. The study suggests that biodegradable plastics, while designed to be more environmentally friendly, may still significantly alter soil biology.
Biodegradable Microplastic-Driven Change in Soil pH Affects Soybean Rhizosphere Microbial N Transformation Processes
Researchers found that biodegradable microplastics made from polybutylene succinate (PBS) caused more harm to soil health than conventional polyethylene microplastics in soybean-growing systems. The biodegradable plastic acidified the soil, disrupted microbial communities responsible for nitrogen cycling, and impaired plant nutrient uptake. This challenges the assumption that biodegradable plastics are always safer for agricultural environments.
Microplastics in soil ecosystems: soil fauna responses to field applications of conventional and biodegradable microplastics
Researchers conducted a field experiment comparing the effects of conventional polyethylene and polypropylene microplastics with biodegradable polylactic acid and polybutylene succinate microplastics on soil fauna communities, finding no significant effects on community composition after 40 days at any concentration tested.
Effects of polyethylene and polylactic acid microplastics on plant growth and bacterial community in the soil
Researchers compared the effects of regular polyethylene and biodegradable polylactic acid microplastics on soybean growth and soil bacteria. Surprisingly, the biodegradable microplastics caused more harm than conventional ones, significantly reducing root growth and altering soil bacterial communities important for nitrogen fixation. This finding challenges the assumption that biodegradable plastics are always safer for the environment and raises questions about their impact on food crops.
Effect of different polymers of microplastics on soil organic carbon and nitrogen – A mesocosm experiment
Researchers found that adding polyethylene and biodegradable microplastics to agricultural soil altered carbon and nitrogen dynamics, with biodegradable microplastics having stronger effects on soil organic carbon decomposition and nutrient cycling than conventional plastics.
Biodegradable and non-biodegradable microplastics affect greenhouse gas emissions through chemical diversity and microbial biodiversity
Researchers investigated how biodegradable polylactic acid (PLA) and non-biodegradable polystyrene (PS) microplastics affect greenhouse gas emissions in soil, finding that both types elevated CO2 and N2O emissions while shifting microbial community composition at both phylum and genus levels. Structural equation modeling revealed that GHG emissions were more strongly correlated with chemical diversity driven by the microplastics than with microbial diversity, with PLA increasing soil organic carbon content.
Field response of N2O emissions, microbial communities, soil biochemical processes and winter barley growth to the addition of conventional and biodegradable microplastics
Researchers conducted a field study comparing the effects of conventional polyethylene and biodegradable PLA microplastics on soil greenhouse gas emissions, microbial communities, and winter barley growth. They found that both types of microplastics altered soil nitrogen cycling and microbial community composition, though biodegradable plastics showed distinct degradation patterns. The study suggests that switching to biodegradable agricultural plastics does not necessarily eliminate the environmental impacts of microplastic contamination in farmland soils.
Effects of different microplastics on the physicochemical properties and microbial diversity of rice rhizosphere soil
Researchers compared how conventional polyethylene and biodegradable polylactic acid microplastics, both fresh and aged, affect rice paddy soil properties and microbial communities. They found that aged microplastics had stronger effects than fresh ones, altering soil pH, nutrient availability, and the composition of root-associated bacteria. The study warns that biodegradable plastics are not necessarily safer for soil health than conventional plastics, especially as they break down over time.
Differential carbon accumulation of microbial necromass and plant lignin by pollution of polyethylene and polylactic acid microplastics in soil
This study found that both conventional polyethylene and biodegradable polylactic acid microplastics changed how carbon is stored in soil. The plastics increased carbon from dead microbes while decreasing carbon from plant material, with most of the additional soil carbon coming from fungal remains. These changes to soil chemistry matter because they could affect agricultural productivity and the ability of soil to store carbon, with broader implications for climate and food systems.
Discrepant responses of bacterial community and enzyme activities to conventional and biodegradable microplastics in paddy soil
Researchers compared the soil effects of conventional polypropylene microplastics versus biodegradable polylactic acid (PLA) microplastics in rice paddy soil over 41 days. Both types altered soil chemistry and bacterial communities, but they had different effects on enzyme activity, with PLA causing distinct changes to carbon and nitrogen cycling. This matters because biodegradable plastics, often assumed to be safer, still release microplastics that affect soil health and potentially food crops.
Unveiling the hidden impact: How biodegradable microplastics influence CO2 and CH4 emissions and Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) profiles in soil ecosystems
Researchers investigated how biodegradable microplastics from PBAT, PBS, and PLA affect greenhouse gas emissions and volatile organic compounds in paddy and upland soils. The study found that despite being biodegradable, these microplastics do not always promote soil emissions as expected, with PBAT and PLA actually reducing certain greenhouse gas fluxes under some conditions.
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.
Microbial metabolism influences microplastic perturbation of dissolved organic matter in agricultural soils
Researchers studied how microplastics from both traditional polyethylene and biodegradable polylactic acid plastics change the chemistry of dissolved organic matter in farm soil. Soil microbes broke down substances released by the plastics, altering the soil's chemical composition over 100 days. Surprisingly, the biodegradable plastic released compounds that soil bacteria could more readily use, and after aging, it had roughly 10 times the pollutant-absorbing capacity of polyethylene, suggesting that so-called biodegradable plastics may pose their own environmental risks in agricultural soil.
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 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.
Hydrolyzable microplastics in soil—low biodegradation but formation of a specific microbial habitat?
Hydrolyzable microplastics such as polylactic acid showed low biodegradation in soil despite their marketed degradability, while their surfaces hosted distinct microbial communities forming a specialized plastisphere. The study questions the environmental safety of biodegradable plastics in agricultural soil contexts.
Insights into soil microbial assemblages and nitrogen cycling function responses to conventional and biodegradable microplastics
Researchers compared how biodegradable polylactic acid and conventional PVC microplastics affect soil bacteria and nitrogen cycling processes. They found that both types of microplastics altered microbial communities, but biodegradable plastics had distinct effects on nitrogen-processing bacteria and did not simply behave as a harmless alternative. The study suggests that switching to biodegradable plastics may change rather than eliminate the impact of microplastic contamination on soil health.
Unveiling the impact of biodegradable polylactic acid microplastics on meadow soil health
Scientists studied how biodegradable PLA microplastics affect meadow soil over 60 days and found they changed soil chemistry, enzyme activity, and microbial communities. Smaller PLA particles had a greater impact on enzyme activity, while larger particles changed soil properties more. These findings suggest that even biodegradable plastics can significantly alter soil health when they break down into microplastics.