Fungal Degradation of Poly(Butylene Adipate-Co-Terephthalate) in Soil and in Compost

The present work mainly dedicated to fungal degradation of poly(butylene adipate-co-terephthalate) [PBAT], to enclose the role of fungi in a real process of biodegradation, the degree of degradation, and to understand the kinetics of PBAT biodegradation. Respirometer tests were realized in soil at 30 A degrees C, and in compost at 30 and 58 A degrees C. Results have shown that temperature is one of the essential parameters governing the fungal degradation of PBAT. Moreover, the final rates of PBAT biodegradation in an inoculated compost with fungi and in a real compost were found comparable, which means that the selected fungi were efficient as much as a mixture of bacteria and fungi. The curves of PBAT biodegradation were modeled by Hill sigmoid. Fungal degradation was completed by investigating the physical and the chemical properties of the polymer during the process of degradation using several analytical methods such as matrix assisted laser desorption ionization-time of fly spectroscopy, size exclusion chromatography, and differential scanning calorimetry. These experiments led to a better understanding of the various stages of fungal degradation of PBAT: hydrolysis as well as mineralization. Furthermore, the analysis of metabolizing products was investigated also.