Turf producers use underground nets to support grass growth. Removing the nets from fully grown turf is difficult, so the material often remains in the soil, causing pollution. Biodegradable polymers that break down in soil are already available to be used in the production of nets, but the problem is that they degrade too quickly. The challenge is to make a net that retains its function for 12 to 14 months, but then breaks down completely as quickly as possible without leaving any microplastics in the soil. Wageningen Food & Biobased Research (part of Wageningen University & Research) and their industrial partners came up with a solution in a TKI project: a net made of biobased plastic that retains full functionality for the needed period before it starts to biodegrade. Extensive research led the way to bioPBS to which natural stabilisers were added.
What’s next
The next challenge is optimizing the processing of the nets so that the industry can make them via a continuous and stable process. In the meantime, the researchers are already thinking about other applications for bioplastics that degrade slowly but completely.