Shiliuyun-Xinjiang Daily (Reporter Xie Huibian) news: On October 29, 2024, large areas of green have grown in the previously barren desert at the 4,867-hectare photovoltaic base in Beiwucha Town, Manas County, Changji Hui Autonomous Prefecture, northwest China’s Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region.

Photo shows seepweed, alta fascue, and sainfoin planted at the 4,867-hecatres photovoltaic base in Beiwucha Town, Manas County, Changji Hui Autonomous Prefecture, northwest China’s Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region by steam blasting technology. (Photo offered by Xinjiang Xuze Biotechnology Co., Ltd)

"This is a new idea for desertification control in Xinjiang, especially suitable for large-scale photovoltaic sites. It is very suitable for sand fixation and has great potential for future promotion and application," Li Shengyu, senior engineer of the Xinjiang Institute of Ecology and Geography of CAS and deputy director of the National Engineering Technology Research Center for Desert-Oasis Ecological Construction, said.

The "new idea" mentioned by Li Shengyu is a new technology developed by Xinjiang Xuze Biotechnology Co., Ltd. With steam blasting technology, the tight structure of cotton straw’s cell wall could be broke, and small molecule nutrients such as sugar, protein, and minerals could be released from the straw. The tissue structure changes from a tight and compact state to a fluffy and porous fibrous state.

We add water and seeds to this fluffy and porous fiber, stir and spray it, then it would form a stroma of about two centimeters in the desert. After about five days, the seeds sprout out, and after 20 days, the root can extend down about 10 centimeters, connecting the sand and stroma. Not only can it store water, but it also has a good sand fixation effect," Zhao Yiyong, assistant to the chairman of Xinjiang Xuze Biotechnology Co., Ltd, said.

Li Shengyu said that the large-scale coverage of stroma is a new attempt. Compared with traditional straw checkerboard barrier, it has good water-retaining property, which can effectively fix sand while reducing soil moisture evaporation. And it also has a good effect on desertification control and vegetation greening.

Xinjiang's cotton production accounts for over 90 percent of China. According to estimates, the annual collection of cotton straw in Xinjiang can reach 10 million tons. As the main by-product of cotton planting, the high-value processing and utilization technology and measures of cotton straw are not yet mature. Currently, the vast majority of cotton straw is still mainly smashed and returned to the field.

Cui Weidong, a researcher at the Institute of Microbial Applications of Xinjiang Academy of Agricultural Sciences, said that the incomplete decomposition and low decomposition efficiency of cotton straw after traditional methods of returning to the field can lead to increased cotton pests and diseases, poor seedling emergence rates, and other problems.

Therefore, effectively utilizing cotton straw and extending Xinjiang's cotton industry chain are key challenges.

The steam blasting technology project of Xinjiang Xuze Biotechnology Co., Ltd has recently been completed and put into production in the small and micro entrepreneurship park of Changji Agricultural High-tech Zone. One production line can process 40 tons of cotton straw per day, filling the gap in the high-quality utilization of cotton straw in Xinjiang. After debugging, the equipment can also be used for blasting treatment of stevia rebaudiana, cistanche, liquorice, shiny-leaved yellowhorn, etc., which can increase the added value of planting industry in Xinjiang.

Not only that, using this technology to instantly release pressure through blasting can also achieve physical breaking of raw materials and separation of cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin, effectively reducing gossypol and pesticide residues in cotton straw, and greatly improving the palatability, digestion rate, and safety of cotton straw as forage. After further biological fermentation and the addition of beneficial bacteria, it is expected to solve the shortage of forage in Xinjiang.

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