Скачать или смотреть The Polylactic Acid Sand Barrier-a new technology to turn desert green

The Polylactic acid (PLA) sand barrier technology with an invention patent has achieved great success in desertification control. Its clever design, using sands as sandbreaks, makes it outstanding from other sand barrier technologies. Its eco-friendly materials, biodegradable PLA, makes it popular in the activities of land degradation prevention. Field experiments on the effects of PLA sand barrier conducted in various arid regions in China during the past ten years indicate that PLA sand barrier can effectively reduce surface wind speed and stabilize sand dunes.
The PLA sand barrier can reduce near-ground wind speed and sand transport rate by 40% and 50% respectively. PLA sand barrier can also keep the concave surface stable and promote the vegetation regeneration. Compared with the conventional mechanical sand barrier, the laying efficiency of PLA sandbags is improved by 3 to 5 times and the handling capacity of the barrier materials is reduced by 20 to 60 times. It is very convenient to prepare the barrier materials for laying out a grid of PLA sandbags because one person can carry the materials for a whole day’s work even if there is no road or transportation available. Compared with the straw sand barrier, the life span of PLA sand barrier increases by 2 to 5 times. A grid of PLA sandbags that has been laid in the field over ten years can still be effective in sand control. The laying cost of PLA sand barrier is similar to the straw sand barrier such as wheat straw or material from Salix gordejevii but lower than the chemical sand barrier such as plastic net.
The PLA fiber is made from the starches of corn or cassava (Manihot esculenta) through the processes of fermentation, polycondensation and melt-spinning. It is completely biodegradable and thus there are no chemical residues left or secondary pollution such as caused by the chemical sand barrier used in recent years. Due to its excellent resistance to ultraviolet light, PLA fiber can keep the sand barrier structure stable for a decade. Therefore, the PLA sand barrier is an effective tool in desertification control by solving the problems caused by low laying efficiency and barrier material limitation in arid regions.

Yu Yi, PhD
Beijing Leeward Science and Technology Co., LTD.
E-mail: [email protected]
D1802, ULO PARK, Furong Street, Wangjing Area, Chaoyang District, Beijing 100102, China