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To solve the problems of the damage of weed in paddy field on crop yield and quality, the impact of chemical herbicides on the ecological environment, and the soil pollution caused by plastic film mulching, the field-positioning test was carried out in 2015 to 2017. Taking Daohuaxiang 2 as the test material, three treatments (plant fiber-based degradable film, plastic film, and CK) were setup to investigate the effects of plant fiber-based degradable film on the weed inhibition, warming effect under mulching cultivation, rice yield, rice quality, and economic benefit. The results showed that compared with CK, the plant fiber-based degradable film and plastic film reduced the weed by 85.5% to 87.7% and 78.7% to 81.7%, respectively. Plant fiber-based degradable film mulching cultivation can increase the soil temperature of soil layer 0 to 0.1 m depth. In 2015 to 2017, rice yield with plant fiber-based degradable film increased by 8.71%, 7.53%, and 9.02%, respectively. Plant fiber-based degradable film can significantly reduce the hardness, increase its adhesion, and improve the eating quality of rice. Different films mulching had a certain impact on crop economic benefit. During the developmental stage of the panicle, the plant fiber-based degradable film began to crack, and by the blossom fruit period, the degradation rate reached the grade of 3 or 4. Therefore, the use of plant fiber-based degradable film instead of plastic film can reduce the amount of weed under the membrane and create a more suitable soil temperature, which was conducive to rice yield and quality.

Biodegradable mulching film (BMF) is a promising alternative to petroleum-based plastic mulching film. Thermal conductivity is an important quality factor of BMF that affects the heat transfer between ambient to soil and plant growth. The objective of this research was to enhance the thermal conductivity of fiber film through an environmentally friendly agent and optimized processing conditions. Response surface methodology (RSM) was used to optimize the processing conditions. With optimized process conditions of 70 g/m2 basis weight, 1.5% wet strength agent content, 0.5% neutral sizing agent content, 15% charcoal addition ratio, and 55 °SR beating degree, the films showed satisfactory thermal conductivity (0.0714 W/m·K) and high dry and wet tensile strengths (33.4 and 12.2 N). The addition of charcoal increased the thermal conductivity of the film by 34.31%. This promising result shows the biodegradable fiber film is able to increase soil temperature and meet the required temperature for crop growth.