BioPitch

Important results from the project

The project BioPitch aimed to develop a forest based, biodegradable infill-material to be used in artificial turfs for soccer. The project has developed a new material that in accelerated test environments shows properties that makes it likely to function in artificial soccer turfs. The properties that have been evaluated in the project to show the material´s potential to be included as infill-material in an artificial grass system all show good results.

Expected long term effects

The resulting granules show very good properties in the evaluations. For example, the Lisport test that has been conducted shows that the material holds together over an expected lifetime of 8-10 years. The biodegradability of the material should be evaluated with further methods in order to control the material´s performance during use and its recyclability. The consortium believes that the results are very promising and that continued development of this track can provide an alternative to traditional granules in artificial turf systems.

Approach and implementation

The participating parties in the project have contributed with their respective knowledge to make the best decisions about how the material should perform as granules in an artificial football turf system. A matrix of 12 different material formulations was developed in 0.5 kg batches which were evaluated for processability and brittleness. From this, a formulation was scaled to 25 kg scale and evaluated for mechanical and moisture properties, UV aging and Lisport abrasion tests. The project has had meetings monthly where status has been presented and discussed.