Bioweedstop 130

Market

Biobased mulch mat for an ecological way of controlling weeds

 

Characteristics

  • 100% made of renewable resources. The raw material is the biopolymer PLA, made out of plant material only.
  • Compostable on long term
  • Lifetime of 2-3 years or more
  • Good permeability
     

Advantages

  • BIOCOVERS® 130 in combination with a layer of treated bark or gravel will block most weeds, no need for herbicides
  • Compostable on long term after a lifetime of minimum 3 years; the mat will degrade very slowly and will at the end of its lifetime - unlike photodegradable plastics (PP/PET/PE/PA…) - leave NO non-biobased elements in the ground
  • The mat should be covered with treated bark or gravel
  • Perfectly permeable for water and nutrients – micro-organisms in the soil stay active
  • Very UV-stable
  • Light weight
  • Easy to cut & install (installation guidelines to be respected)

 

Additional: installation guidelines (preparation site - installation mat)

What is PLA?

 PLA or Poly Lactic Acid is made from plant material. Starch and plant sugars are used as renewable resource. Today, mainly side and waste streams of the corn industry are used as feedstock.

How is PLA produced? Some chemistry

It all starts with the sun! During the process of the photosynthesis, the leafs of green plants will absorb CO2 from the atmosphere. A molecule CO2 is combined with a molecule water to form sugar and oxygen. The molecule oxygen is released back in the atmosphere. The sugar is used as fuel for the plants. Any unused sugar is stored as starch and can be harvested.

 

Industrially, dextrose (sugar) is created from the harvested plant starch through a process called hydrolysis. Next, microorganism will convert the sugar into lactic acid through fermentation. The PLA polymer is formed either by (1) direct condensation of lactic acid or (2) via the cyclic intermediate lactide through a ring opening process.  PLA is formed!