Biodegradation of poly(butylene succinate) in soil laboratory incubations assessed by stable carbon isotope labelling

Taylor F. Nelson, Rebekka Baumgartner, Madalina Jaggi, Stefano M. Bernasconi, Glauco Battagliarin, Carsten Sinkel, Andreas Künkel, Hans-Peter E. Kohler, Kristopher McNeill and Michael Sander ()
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Taylor F. Nelson: ETH Zurich
Rebekka Baumgartner: ETH Zurich
Madalina Jaggi: ETH Zurich
Stefano M. Bernasconi: ETH Zurich
Glauco Battagliarin: BASF SE, Carl-Bosch-Strasse 38
Carsten Sinkel: BASF SE, Carl-Bosch-Strasse 38
Andreas Künkel: BASF SE, Carl-Bosch-Strasse 38
Hans-Peter E. Kohler: Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology (Eawag)
Kristopher McNeill: ETH Zurich
Michael Sander: ETH Zurich

Nature Communications, 2022, vol. 13, issue 1, 1-16

Abstract: Abstract Using biodegradable instead of conventional plastics in agricultural applications promises to help overcome plastic pollution of agricultural soils. However, analytical limitations impede our understanding of plastic biodegradation in soils. Utilizing stable carbon isotope (13C-)labelled poly(butylene succinate) (PBS), a synthetic polyester, we herein present an analytical approach to continuously quantify PBS mineralization to 13CO2 during soil incubations and, thereafter, to determine non-mineralized PBS-derived 13C remaining in the soil. We demonstrate extensive PBS mineralization (65 % of added 13C) and a closed mass balance on PBS−13C over 425 days of incubation. Extraction of residual PBS from soils combined with kinetic modeling of the biodegradation data and results from monomer (i.e., butanediol and succinate) mineralization experiments suggest that PBS hydrolytic breakdown controlled the overall PBS biodegradation rate. Beyond PBS biodegradation in soil, the presented methodology is broadly applicable to investigate biodegradation of other biodegradable polymers in various receiving environments.

Date: 2022
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DOI: 10.1038/s41467-022-33064-8

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