PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an artificial soil grain capable of exerting a unique function that natural soil does not have while maintaining water permeability and/or air permeability between the inside and the outside of the artificial soil grain.SOLUTION: There is provided an artificial soil grain 50 comprising a base part 10 that is formed by aggregating fibers 1, in which functional particles 2 exist on a surface layer part 11 of the base part 10, the functional particles 2 are held in a contact state with the fibers 1 which exist on the surface layer part 11 at a plurality of areas. In the surface layer part 11, the fibers 1 that exist on the surface layer part 11 are solidified by binder having 10 to 50 wt.% of water insolubility with respect to its weight in the state where water permeability and/or air permeability between the inside and the outside of the base part 10 is maintained, the grain diameter of the functional particle 2 is 20 to 300 μm, and the thickness of the fibers 1 is 5 to 100 μm.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1COPYRIGHT: (C)2017,JPO&INPIT【課題】人工土壌粒子の内部と外部との通水性及び/又は通気性を維持しながら、天然土壌にはない独自の機能を発揮させることができる人工土壌粒子を提供する。【解決手段】繊維1を集合してなる基部10を備えた人工土壌粒子50であって、基部10の表層部11に機能性粒子2が存在し、機能性粒子2が、表層部11に存在する繊維1と複数箇所で接触した状態で保持されており、表層部11は、基部10の内部と外部との通水性及び/又は通気性を維持した状態で、表層部11に存在する繊維1が、その重量に対して10~50重量%の水不溶性のバインダーで固結されており、機能性粒子2の粒径が20~300μmであり、繊維1の太さが5~100μmである。【選択図】図1
