The Preparation and Applications of One Biodegradable Liquid Film Mulching by Oxidized Corn Starch-Gelatin Composite

Degraded gelatin (Gel) and oxidized corn starch (OCS) as abundant, recyclable, and biodegradable materials can be applied to agricultural production, which has been investigated in this research. Firstly, the prepared oxidized corn starch-gelatin (OCS-Gel) composite material was characterized through a Fourier transform infrared spectrometer (FT-IR), a scanning electron microscope (SEM) picture, and a thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). The OCS-Gel was then used as a liquid film mulching for agricultural production, and the application performances (hygroscopicity, permeability, water retention, etc.) of the OCS-Gel were measured. Finally, the planting rapeseed experiments were carried out, and the germination and growing state of the rapeseed seeds were observed. The results from the structural analysis indicated that OCS-Gel enriches pore structure and exhibits high thermal stability up to 324.8 °C. In the application experiments, the OCS-Gel showed excellent properties of water-absorbing and water-retention and low permeability. In addition, the germination rate of the rapeseed seed reached 80 %, and the height of rapeseeds obviously increased in pot experiments after adding the liquid film mulching.